L  I  B  RARY 

OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

OF 


Receivedt/ 


Accessions  No, 


1892       >7 
s/telf  No. 


THE 


CRATER; 

OR, 

VULCAN'S   PEAK. 

nf  tije 


BY    J.    FENIMORE    COOPER. 


"Thus  arise 

Races  of  living  tilings,  glorious  in  strength- 
And  perish,  as  the  quickening  breath  of  God 
Pills  them,  or  ia  withdrawn." — Bryant. 


COMPLETE  IN  ONE    VOLUME. 


NEW    EDITION. 


NEW    YORK: 
STRINGER      AND      TOWNSEND 


1855. 


THE  CRATER. 


Entered,  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1847,  by 
J.  FENIMORE  COOPER, 

in  the  clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  Northern  District 
of  New  York. 


?s 


PKEFACE. 


THE  reader  of  this  book  will  very  naturally  be  dis 
posed  to  ask  the  question,  why  the  geographies,  histo 
ries,  and  other  works  of  a  similar  character,  have 
never  made  any  mention  of  the  regions  and  events 
that  compose  its  subject.  The  answer  is  obvious 
enough,  and  ought  to  satisfy  every  mind,  however 
"  inquiring."  The  fact  is,  that  the  authors  of  the  dif 
ferent  works  to  which  there  is  any  allusion,  most  pro 
bably  never  heard  there  were  any  such  places  as  the 
Reef,  Rancocus  Island,  Vulcan's  Peak,  the  Crater,  and 
the  other  islands  of  which  so  much  is  said  in  our  pages. 
In  other  words,  they  knew  nothing  about  them. 

We  shall  very  freely  admit  that,  under  ordinary 
circumstances,  it  would  be  prima  facie  evidence 
against  the  existence  of  any  spot  on  the  face  of  this 
earth,  that  the  geographies  took  no  notice  of  it  It  will 


IV  PREFACE. 

be  remembered,  however,  that  the  time  was,  and  that 
only  three  centuries  and  a  half  since,  when  the  geo 
graphies  did  not  contain  a  syllable  about  the  whole  of 
the  American  continent ;  that  it  is  not  a  century  since 
they  began  to  describe  New  Zealand,  New  Holland, 
Tahiti,  Oahu,  and  a  vast  number  of  other  places,  that 
are  now  constantly  alluded  to,  even  in  the  daily  jour 
nals.  Very  little  is  said  in  the  largest  geographies,  of 
Japan,  for  instance ;  and  it  may  be  questioned  if  they 
might  not  just  as  well  be  altogether  silent  on  the  sub 
ject,  as  for  any  accurate  information  they  do  convey. 
In  a  word,  much  as  is  now  known  of  the  globe,  a 
great  deal  still  remains  to  be  told,  and  we  do  not  see 
why  the  "  inquiring  mind"  should  not  seek  for  infor 
mation  in  our  pages,  as  well  as  in  some  that  are 
ushered  in  to  public  notice  by  a  flourish  of  literary 
trumpets,  that  are  blown  by  presidents,  vice-presidents 
and  secretaries  of  various  learned  bodies. 

One  thing  we  shall  ever  maintain,  and  that  in  the 
face  of  all  who  may  be  disposed  to  underrate  the  value 
of  our  labours,  which  is  this : — there  is  not  a  word  in 
these  volumes  which  we  now  lay  before  the  reader, 
as  grave  matter  of  fact,  that  is  not  entitled  to  the  most 
implicit  credit.  We  scorn  deception.  Lest,  however, 
some  cavillers  may  be  found,  we  will  present  a  few 
of  those  reasons  which  occur  to  our  mind,  on  the  spur 
of  the  moment,  as  tending  to  show  that  everything 
jrelated  here  might  be  just  as  true  as  Cook's  voyages 


PREFACE.  T 

themselves.  In  the  first  place,  this  earth  is  large,  and 
has  sufficient  surface  to  contain,  not  only  all  the  islands 
mentioned  in  our  pages,  but  a  great  many  more. 
Something  is  established  when  the  possibility  of  any 
hypothetical  point  is  placed  beyond  dispute.  Then, 
not  one  half  as  much  was  known  of  the  islands  of  the 
Pacific,  at  the  close  of  the  last,  and  at  the  commence 
ment  of  the  present  century,  as  is  known  to-day.  In 
such  a  dearth  of  precise  information,  it  may  very  well 
have  happened  that  many  things  occurred  touching 
which  we  have  not  said  even  one  word.  Again,  it 
should  never  be  forgotten  that  generations  were  born, 
lived  their  time,  died,  and  have  been  forgotten,  among 
those  remote  groups,  about  which  no  civilized  man 
ever  has,  or  ever  will  hear  anything.  If  such  be  ad 
mitted  to  be  the  facts,  why  may  not  all  that  is  here 
related  have  happened,  and  equally  escape  the  know 
ledge  of  the  rest  of  the  civilized  world  ?  During  the 
wars  of  the  French  revolution,  trifling  events  attracted 
but  little  of  the  general  attention,  and  we  are  not  to 
think  of  interests  of  this  nature,  in  that  day,  as  one 
would  think  of  them  now. 

Whatever  may  be  thought  of  the  authenticity  of  its 
incidents,  we  hope  this  book  will  be  found  not  to  be  to 
tally  without  a  moral.  Truth  is  not  absolutely  necessary 
to  the  illustration  of  a  principle,  the  imaginary  some 
times  doing  that  office  quite  as  effectually  as  the  actual. 

The  reader  may  next  wish  to  know  why  the  won- 
1* 


Tl  PREFACE. 

derful  events  related  in  these  volumes  have  so  long 
been  hidden  from  the  world.  In  answer  to  this  we 
would  ask  if  any  one  can  tell  how  many  thousands  of 
years  the  waters  have  tumbled  down  the  cliffs  at  Nia 
gara,  or  why  it  was  that  civilized  men  heard  of  the 
existence  of  this  wonderful  cataract  so  lately  as  only 
three  centuries  since.  The  fact  is,  there  must  be  a 
beginning  to  everything ;  and  now  there  is  a  beginning 
to  the  world's  knowing  the  history  of  Vulcan's  Peak, 
and  the  Crater.  Lest  the  reader,  however,  should  feel 
disposed  to  reproach  the  past  age  with  having  been 
negligent  in  its  collection  of  historical  and  geological 
incidents,  we  would  again  remind  him  of  the  magnitude 
of  the  events  that  so  naturally  occupied  its  attention. 
It  is  scarcely  possible,  for  instance,  for  one  who  did 
not  live  forty  years  ago  to  have  any  notion  how  com 
pletely  the  world  was  engaged  in  wondering  at  Napo 
leon  and  his  marvellous  career,  which  last  contained 
even  more  extraordinary  features  than  anything  related 
here ;  though  certainly  of  a  very  different  character. 
All  wondering,  for  near  a  quarter  of  a  century,  was 
monopolized  by  the  French  Revolution  and  its  conse 
quences. 

There  are  a  few  explanations,  however,  which  are 
of  a  very  humble  nature  compared  with  the  principal 
events  of  our  history,  but  which  may  as  well  be  given 
here.  The  Woolston  family  still  exists  in  Pennsylva 
nia,  and  that,  by  the  way,  is  something  towards  cor- 


PREFACE 


vii 


roborating  the  truth  of  our  narrative.  Its  most  distin 
guished  member  is  recently  dead,  and  his  journal  has 
been  the  authority  for  most  of  the  truths  here  related. 
He  died  at  a  good  old  age,  having  seen  his  three-score 
years  and  ten,  leaving  behind  him,  in  addition  to  a  very 
ample  estate,  not  only  a  good  character,  which  means 
neither  more  nor  less  than  what  "the  neighbours," 
amid  their  ignorance,  envy,  love  of  detraction,  jealousy 
and  other  similar  qualities,  might  think  proper  to  say 
of  him,  but  the  odour  of  a  well-spent  life,  in  which  lie 
struggled  hard  to  live  more  in  favour  with  God,  than 
in  favour  with  man.  It  was  remarked  in  him,  for  the 
last  forty  years  of  his  life,  or  after  his  return  to  Bucks, 
that  he  regarded  all  popular  demonstrations  with  dis 
taste,  and,  as  some  of  his  enemies  pretended,  with 
contempt  Nevertheless,  he  strictly  acquitted  himself 
of  all  his  public  duties,  and  never  neglected  to  vote. 
It  is  believed  that  his  hopes  for  the  future,  meaning  in 
a  social  and  earthly  sense,  were  not  very  vivid,  and 
he  was  often  heard  to  repeat  that  warning  text  of 
Scripture  which  tells  us,  "  Let  him  that  thinketh  he 
standeth,  take  heed  lest  he  fall." 

The  faithful,  and  once  lovely  partner  of  this  princi 
pal  personage  of  our  history  is  also  dead.  It  would 
seem  that  it  was  not  intended  they  should  be  long 
asunder.  But  their  time  was  come,  and  they  might 
almost  be  said  to  have  departed  in  company.  The 
same  is  true  of  Friends  Robert  and  Martha,  who  have 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

also  filled  their  time,  and  gone  hence,  it  is  to  be  hoped 
to  a  better  world.  Some  few  of  the  younger  persons 
of  our  drama  still  exist,  but  it  has  been  remarked  of 
them,  that  they  avoid  conversing  of  the  events  of  their 
younger  days.  Youth  is  the  season  of  hope,  and  hope 
disappointed  has  little  to  induce  us  to  dwell  on  its  de 
ceptive  pictures. 

If  those  who  now  live  in  this  republic,  can  see  any 
grounds  for  a  timely  warning  in  the  events  here 
recorded,  it  may  happen  that  the  mercy  of  a  divine 
Creator  may  still  preserve  that  which  he  has  hitherto 
cherished  and  protected. 

It  remains  only  to  say  that  we  have  endeavoured  to 
imitate  the  simplicity  of  Captain  Woolston's  journal, 
in  writing  this  book,  and  should  any  homeliness  of 
style  be  discovered,  we  trust  it  will  be  imputed  to  that 
circumstance. 


THE  CRATEK. 


CHAPTER  I. 

u>  'T  was  a  commodity  lay  fretting  by  you  ; 
'Twill  bring  you  gain,  or  perish  on  the  seas.1' 

Taming  of  the  Shrew. 

THERE  is  nothing  in  which  American  Liberty,  not  always 
as  much  restrained  as  it  might  be,  has  manifested  a  more 
decided  tendency  to  run  riot,  than  in  the  use  of  names 
As  for  Christian  names,  the  Heathen  Mythology,  the  Bible, 
Ancient  History,  and  all  the  classics,  have  long  since  been 
exhausted,  and  the  organ  of  invention  has  been  at  work 
with  an  exuberance  of  imagination  that  is  really  wonderful 
for  such  a  matter-of-fact  people.  Whence  all  the  strange 
sounds  have  been  derived  which  have  thus  been  pressed 
into  the  service  of  this  human  nomenclature,  it  would 
puzzle  the  most  ingenious  philologist  to  say.  The  days 
of  the  Kates,  and  Dollys,  and  Pattys,  and  Bettys,  have 
passed  away,  and  in  their  stead  we  hear  of  Lowinys, 
and  Orchistrys,  Philenys,  Alminys,  Cytherys,  Sarahlettys, 
Amindys,  Marindys,  &,c.  &,c.  &/c.  All  these  last  appellations 
terminate  properly  with  an  a,  but  this  unfortunate  vowel, 
when  a  final  letter,  being  popularly  pronounced  like  y,  we 
have  adapted  our  spelling  to  the  sound,  which  produces  a 
complete  bathos  to  all  these  flights  in  taste. 

The  hero  of  this  narrative  was  born  fully  sixty  years 
since,  and  happily  before  the  rage  for  modern  appella 
tions,  though  he  just  escaped  being  named  after  another 
system  which  we  cannot  say  we  altogether  admire;  that 
of  using  a  family,  for  a  Christian  name.  This  business  of 
names  is  a  sort  of  science  in  itself  and  we  do  believe  that 


10  THE  CRATER; 

it  is  less  understood  and  less  attended  to  in  this  country 
than  in  almost  all  others.  When  a  Spaniard  writes  hia 
name  as  Juan  de  Castro  y*  Munos,  we  know  that  his  father 
belonged  to  the  family  of  Castro  and  his  mother  to  that  of 
Munos.  The  French,  and  Italian,  and  Russian  woman, 
&c.,  writes  on  her  card  Madame  this  or  that,  born  so  and 
so ;  all  which  tells  the  whole  history  of  her  individuality. 
Many  French  women,  in  signing  their  names,  prefix  those 
of  their  own  family  to  those  of  their  husbands,  a  sensible 
and  simple  usage  that  we  are  glad  to  see  is  beginning  to 
obtain  among  ourselves.  The  records  on  tomb-stones,  too, 
might  be  made  much  more  clear  and  useful  than  they  now 
are,  by  stating  distinctly  who  the  party  was,  on  both  sides 
of  the  house,  or  by  father  and  mother ;  and  each  married 
woman  ought  to  be  commemorated  in  some  such  fashion 
as  this  :  "  Here  lies  Jane  Smith,  wife  of  John  Jones,"  &,c., 
or,  "  Jane,  daughter  of  Thomas  Smith  and  wife  of  John 
Jones."  We  believe  that,  in  some  countries,  a  woman's 
name  is  not  properly  considered  to  be  changed  by  mar 
riage,  but  she  becomes  a  Mrs.  only  in  connection  with  the 
name  of  her  husband.  Thus  Jane  Smith  becomes  Mrs. 
John  Jones,  but  not  Mrs.  Jane  Jones.  It  is  on  this  idea 
we  suppose  that  our  ancestors  the  English — every  English 
man,  as  a  matter  of  course,  being  every  American's  ances 
tor — thus  it  is,  we  suppose,  therefore,  that  our  ancestors, 
who  pay  so  much  more  attention  to  such  matters  than  we 
do  ourselves,  in  their  table  of  courtesy,  call  the  wife  of 
Lord  John  Russell,  Lady  John,  and  not  Lady — whatever 
her  Christian  name  may  happen  to  be.  We  suppose,  more 
over,  it  is  on  this  principle  that  Mrs.  General  This,  Mrs. 
Dr.  That,  and  Mrs.  Senator  T'other,  are  as  inaccurate  as 
they  are  notoriously  vulgar. 

Mark  Woolston  came  from  a  part  of  this  great  republic 
where  the  names  are  still  as  simple,  unpretending,  and  as 
good  Saxon  English,  as  in  the  county  of  Kent  itself.  He 
was  born  in  the  little  town  of  Bristol,  Bucks  county,  Penn 
sylvania.  This  is  a  portion  of  the  country  that,  Heaven 

*  Some  few  of  our  readers  may  require  to  be  told  that,  in  Spa 
nish,  y,  pronounced  as  e,  is  the  simple  conjunction  "and;"  thus 
this  name  is  de  Castro  and  Munos. 


on,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  11 

be  praised',  still  retains  some  of  the  good  old-fashioned 
directness  and  simplicity.  Bucks  is  full  of  Jacks,  and 
Bens,  and  Dicks,  and  we  question  if  there  is  such  a  crea 
ture,  of  native  growth,  in  all  that  region,  as  an  Ithusy,  or 
a  Seneky,  or  a  Dianthy,  or  an  Antonizetty,  or  a  Deidamy.* 
The  Woolstons,  in  particular,  were  a  plain  family,  and 
very  unpretending  in  their  external  appearance,  but  of 
solid  and  highly  respectable  habits  around  the  domestic 
hearth.  Knowing  perfectly  how  to  spell,  they  never 
dreamed  any  one  would  suspect  them  of  ignorance.  They 
called  themselves  as  their  forefathers  were  called,  that  is 
to  say,  Wooster,  or  just  as  Worcester  is  pronounced ;  though 
a  Yankee  schoolmaster  tried  for  a  whole  summer  to  per 
suade  our  hero,  when  a  child,  that  he  ought  to  be  styled 
Wool-ston.  This  had  no  effect  on  Mark,  who  went  on 
talking  of  his  uncles  and  aunts,  "  Josy  Wooster,"  and 
"  Tommy  Wooster,"  and  "  Peggy  Wooster,"  precisely  as 
if  a  New  England  academy  did  not  exist  on  earth;  or  as 
if  Webster  had  not  actually  put  Johnson  under  his  feet ! 

The  father  of  Mark  Woolston  (or  Wooster)  was  a  phy 
sician,  and,  for  the  country  and  age,  was  a  well-educated 
and  skilful  man.  Mark  was  born  in  1777,  just  seventy 
years  since,  and  only  ten  days  before  the  surrender  of 
Burgoyne.  A  good  deal  of  attention  was  paid  to  his  in 
struction,  and  fortunately  for  himself,  his  servitude  under 
the  eastern  pedagogue  was  of  very  short  duration,  and 
Mark  continued  to  speak  the  English  language  as  his  fa 
thers  had  spoken  it  before  him.  The  difference  on  the 
score  of  language,  between  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey 
and  Maryland,  always  keeping  in  the  counties  that  were 
not  settled  by  Germans  or  Irish,  and  the  New  England 
states,  and  through  them,  New  York,  is  really  so  obvious 
as  to  deserve  a  passing  word.  In  the  states  first  named, 
taverns,  for  instance,  are  still  called  the  Dun  Cow,  the  In- 
djan  Queen,  or  the  Anchor ;  whereas  such  a  thing  would 
be  hard  to  find,  at  this  day,  among  the  six  millions  of 

•  Absurd  and  forced  as  these  strange  appellations  may  appear, 
they  are  all  genuine.  The  writer  has  collected  a  long  list  of  such 
names  from  real  life,  which  he  may  one  day  publish — Orchistra, 
Philena,  and  Almina  are  among  them.  To  all  the  names  ending 
io  a,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  sound  ef  a  final  y  is  given. 


12  THE  CRATER; 

people  who  dwell  in  the  latter.  We  question  if  there  be 
such  a  thing  as  a  coffee-house  in  all  Philadelphia,  though 
we  admit  it  with  grief,  the  respectable  town  of  Brotherly 
Love  has,  in  some  respects,  become  infected  with  the  spirit 
of  innovation.  Thus  it  is  that  good  old  "  State  House 
Yard"  has  been  changed  into  "  Independence  Square." 
This  certainly  is  not  as  bad  as  the  tour  de  force  of  the 
aldermen  of  Manhattan  when  they  altered  "  Bear  Market" 
into  "Washington  Market !"  for  it  is  not  a  prostitution  of 
the  name  of  a  great  man,  in  the  first  place,  and  there  is  a 
direct  historical  allusion  in  the  new  name  that  everybody 
can  understand.  Still,  it  is  to  be  regretted ;  and  we  hope 
this  will  be  the  last  thing  of  the  sort  that  will  ever  occur, 
though  we  confess  our  confidence  in  Philadelphian  stability 
and  consistency  is  a  good  deal  lessened,  since  we  have 
learned,  by  means  of  a  late  law-suit,  that  there  are  fifty  or 
sixty  aldermen  in  the  place ;  a  number  of  those  worthies 
that  is  quite  sufficient  to  upset  the  proprieties,  in  Athens 
itself! 

Dr.  Woolston  had  a  competitor  in  another  physician, 
who  lived  within  a  mile  of  him,  and  whose  name  was  Yard- 
ley.  Dr.  Yardley  was  a  very  respectable  person,  had  about 
the  same  degree  of  talents  and  knowledge  as  his  neighbour 
and  rival,  but  was  much  the  richest  man  of  the  two.  Dr. 
Yardley,  however,  had  but  one  child,  a  daughter,  whereas 
Dr.  Woolston,  with  much  less  of  means,  had  sons  and 
daughters.  Mark  was  the  oldest  of  the  family,  and  it  was 
probably  owing  to  this  circumstance  that  he  was  so  well 
educated,  since  the  expense  was  not  yet  to  be  shared  with 
that  of  keeping  his  brothers  and  sisters  at  schools  of  the 
same  character. 

In  1777  an  American  college  was  little  better  than  a 
high  school.  It  could  not  be  called,  in  strictness,  a  gram 
mar  school,  inasmuch  as  all  the  sciences  were  glanced  at, 
if  not  studied ;  but,  as  respects  the  classics,  more  than 
a  grammar  school  it  was  not,  nor  that  of  a  very  high 
order.  It  was  a  consequence  of  the  light  nature  of  the 
studies,  that  mere  boys  graduated  in  those  institutions. 
Such  was  the  case  with  Mark  Woolston,  who  would  have 
taken  his  degree  as  a  Bachelor  of  Arts,  at  Nassau  Hall, 
Princeton,  had  not  an  event  occurred,  in  his  sixteenth 


OR)   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  13 

year,  which  produced  an  entire  change^in  his  plan  of  life, 
and  nipped  his  academical  honours  in  the  bud. 

Although  it  is  unusual  for  square-rigged  vessels  of  any 
size  to  ascend  the  Delaware  higher  than  Philadelphia,  the 
river  is,  in  truth,  navigable  for  such  craft  almost  to  Trenton 
Bridge.  In  the  year  1793,  when  Mark  Woolston  was  just 
sixteen,  a  full-rigged  ship  actually  came  up,  and  lay  at  the 
end  of  the  wharf  in  Burlington,  the  little  town  nearly  op 
posite  to  Bristol,  where  she  attracted  a  great  deal  of  the 
attention  of  all  the  youths  of  the  vicinity.  Mark  was  at 
home,  in  a  vacation,  and  he  passed  half  his  time  in  and 
about  that  ship,  crossing  the  river  in  a  skiff  of  which  he 
was  the  owner,  in  order  to  do  so.  From  that  hour  young 
Mark  affected  the  sea,  and  all  the  tears  of  his  mother  and 
eldest  sister,  the  latter  a  pretty  girl  only  two  years  his  ju 
nior,  and  the  more  sober  advice  of  his  father,  could  not 
induce  him  to  change  his  mind.  A  six  weeks'  vacation 
was  passed  in  the  discussion  of  this  subject,  when  the  Doctor 
yielded  to  his  son's  importunities,  probably  foreseeing  he 
should  have  his  hands  full  to  educate  his  other  children, 
and  not  unwilling  to  put  this  child,  as  early  as  possible,  in 
the  way  of  supporting  himself. 

The  commerce  of  America,  in  1793,  was  already  flou 
rishing,  and  Philadelphia  was  then  much  the  most  import 
ant  place  in  the  country.  Its  East  India  trade,  in  parti 
cular,  was  very  large  and  growing,  and  Dr.  Woolston  knew 
that  fortunes  were  rapidly  made  by  many  engaged  in  it. 
After  turning  the  thing  well  over  in  his  mind,  he  deter 
mined  to  consult  Mark's  inclinations,  and  to  make  a  sailor 
of  him.  He  had  a  cousin  married  to  the  sister  of  an  East 
India,  or  rather  of  a  Canton  ship-master,  and  to  this  person 
the  father  applied  for  advice  and  assistance.  Captain 
Crutchely  very  willingly  consented  to  receive  Mark  in  his 
own  vessel,  the  Raricocus,  and  promised  "  to  make  a  man 
and  an  officer  of  him." 

The  very  day  Mark  first  saw  the  ocean  he  was  sixteen 
years  old.  He  had  got  his  height,  five  feet  eleven,  and 
was  strong  for  his  years,  and  active.  In  fact,  it  would  not 
have  been  easy  to  find  a  lad  every  way  so  well  adapted 
to  his  new  calling,  as  young  Mark  Woolston.  The 

three  years  of  his  college  life,  if  they  had  not  made  him 
r    o 


14  THE  CRATER; 

a  Newton,  or  a  Bacon,  had  done  him  no  harm,  filling  his 
mind  with  the  germs  of  ideas  that  were  destined  after 
wards  to  become  extremely  useful  to  him.  The  young 
man  was  already,  indeed,  a  sort  of  factotum,  being  clever 
and  handy  at  so  many  things  and  in  so  many  different 
ways,  as  early  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  officers.  Long 
before  the  vessel  reached  the  capes,  he  was  at  home  in 
her,  from  her  truck  to  her  keelson,  and  Captain  Crutchely 
remarked  to  his  chief  mate,  the  day  they  got  to  sea,  that 
"  young  Mark  Woolston  was  likely  to  turn  up  a  trump." 

As  for  Mark  himself,  he  did  not  lose  sight  of  the  land, 
for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  altogether  without  regrets. 
He  had  a  good  deal  of  feeling  in  connection  with  his  pa 
rents,  and  his  brothers  and  sisters ;  but,  as  it  is  our  aim  to 
conceal  nothing  which  ought  to  be  revealed,  we  must  add 
there  was  still  another  who  filled  his  thoughts  more  than 
all  the  rest  united.  This  person  was  Bridget  Yardley, 
the  only  child  of  his  father's  most  formidable  professional 
competitor. 

The  two  physicians  were  obliged  to  keep  up  a  sickly 
intercourse,  not  intending  a  pun.  They  were  too  often 
called  in  to  consult  together,  to  maintain  an  open  war. 
While  the  heads  of  their  respective  families  occasionally 
met,  therefore,  at  the  bed-side  of  their  patients,  the  families 
themselves  had  no  direct  communications.  It  is  true,  that 
Mrs.  Woolston  and  Mrs.  Yardley  were  occasionally  to  be 
seen  seated  at  the  same  tea-table,  taking  their  hyson  in 
company,  for  the  recent  trade  with  China  had  expelled  the 
bohea  from  most  of  the  better  parlours  of  the  country; 
nevertheless,  these  good  ladies  could  not  get  to  be  cordial 
with  each  other.  They  themselves  had  a  difference  on 
religious  points,  that  was  alrrTost  as  bitter  as  the  differences 
of  opinions  between  their  husbands  on  the  subject  of  alter 
atives.  In  that  distant  day,  homoeopathy,  and  allopathy, 
and  hydropathy,  and  all  theopathies,  were  nearly  unknown; 
but  men  could  wrangle  and  abuse  each  other  on  medical 
points,  just  as  well  and  as  bitterly  then,  as  they  do  now. 
Religion,  too,  quite  as  often  failed  to  bear  its  proper  fruits, 
in  1793,  as  it  proves  barren  in  these,  our  own  times.  On 
this  subject  of  religion,  we  have  one  word  to  say,  and  that 
is,  simply,  that  it  never  was  a  meet  matter  for  self-gratu- 


OR,     VULCAN    8     PEAK.  15 

lation  and  boasting.  Here  we  have  the  Americo-Anglican 
church,  just  as  it  has  finished  a  blast  of  trumpets,  through 
the  medium  of  numberless  periodicals  and  a  thousand  let 
ters  from  its  confiding  if  not  confident  clergy,  in  honour 
of  its  qiliet,  and  harmony,  and  superior  polity,  suspended 
on  the  very  brink  of  the  precipice  of  separation,  if  not  of 
schism,  and  all  because  it  has  pleased  certain  ultra-subli 
mated  divines  in  the  other  hemisphere,  to  write  a  parcel 
ot  tracts  that  nobody  understands,  themselves  included. 
How  many  even  of  the  ministers  of  the  altar  fall,  at  the 
very  moment  they  are  beginning  to  fancy  themselves  saints, 
and  are  ready  to  thank  God  they  are  "  not  like  the  pub 
licans!" 

Both  Mrs.  Woolston  and  Mrs.  Yardley  were  what  is 
called  '  pious ;'  that  is,  each  said  her  prayers,  each  went 
to  her  particular  church,  and  very  particular  churches 
they  were;  each  fancied  she  had  a  sufficiency  of  saving 
faith,  but  neither  was  charitable  enough  to  think,  in  a  very 
friendly  temper,  of  the  other.  This  difference  of  religious 
opinion,  added  to  the  rival  reputations  of  their  husbands, 
made  these  ladies  anything  but  good  neighbours,  and,  as 
has  been  intimated,  years  had  passed  since  either  had  en 
tered  the  door  of  the  other. 

Very  different  was  the  feeling  of  the  children.  Anne 
Woolston,  the  oldest  sister  of  Mark,  and  Bridget  Yardley, 
were  nearly  of  an  age,  and  they  were  not  only  school-mates, 
but  fast  friends.  To  give  their  mothers  their  due,  they 
did  not  lessen  this  intimacy  by  hints,  or  intimations  of  any 
sort,  but  let  the  girls  obey  their  own  tastes,  as  if  satisfied 
it  was  quite  sufficient  for  "  professors  of  religion"  to  hate 
in  their  own  persons,  without  entailing  the  feeling  on  pos 
terity.  Anne  and  Bridget  consequently  became  warm 
friends,  the  two  sweet,  pretty  young  things  both  believing, 
in  the  simplicity  of  their  hearts,  that  the  very  circumstance 
which  in  truth  caused  the  alienation,  not  to  say  the  hostility 
of  the  elder  members  of  their  respective  families,  viz.  pro 
fessional  identity,  was  an  additional  reason  why  they  should 
love  each  other  so  much  the  more.  Tho  girls  were  about 
two  and  three  years  the  juniors  of  Mark,  but  well  grown 
for  their  time  of  life,  and  frank  and  affectionate  as  inm> 
cerica  and  warm  hearts  could  make  them.  Each  was  more 


16  THE   CRATER; 

than  pretty,  though  it  was  in  styles  so  very  different,  aa 
scarcely  to  produce  any  of  that  other  sort  of  rivalry,  which 
is  so  apt  to  occur  even  in  the  gentler  sex.  Anne  had 
bloom,  and  features,  and  fine  teeth,  and,  a  charm  that  is 
so  very  common  in  America,  a  good  mouth ;  but  Bridget 
had  all  these  added  to  expression.  Nothing  could  be  more 
soft,  gentle  and  feminine,  than  Bridget  Yardley's  counte 
nance,  in  its  ordinary  state  of  rest;  or  more  spirited,  laugh 
ing,  buoyant  or  pitying  than  it  became,  as  the  different 
passions  or  feelings  were  excited  in  her  young  bosom.  As 
Mark  was  often  sent  to  see  his  sister  home,  in  her  frequent 
visits  to  the  madam's  house,  where  the  two  girls  held  most 
of  their  intercourse,  he  was  naturally  enough  admitted  into 
their  association.  The  connection  commenced  by  Mark's 
agreeing  to  be  Bridget's  brother,  as  well  as  Anne's.  This 
was  generous,  at  least;  for  Bridget  was  an  only  child,  and 
it  was  no  more  than  right  to  repair  the  wrongs  of  fortune 
in  this  particular.  The  charming  young  thing  declared 
that  she  would  "  rather  have  Mark  Woolston  for  her  brother 
than  any  other  boy  in  Bristol ;  and  that  it  was  delightful  to 
have  the  same  person  for  a  brother  as  Anne!"  Notwith 
standing  this  flight  in  the  romantic,  Bridget  Yardley  was 
as  natural  as  it  was  possible  for  a  female  in  a  reasonably 
civilized  condition  of  society  to  be.  There  was  a  vast 
deal  of  excellent,  feminine  self-devotion  in  her  tempera 
ment,  but  not  a  particle  of  the  exaggerated,  in  either  sen 
timent  or  feeling.  True  as  steel  in  all  her  impulses  and 
opinions,  in  adopting  Mark  for  a  brother  she  merely  yielded 
to  a  strong  natural  sympathy,  without  understanding  its 
tendency  or  its  origin.  She  would  talk  by  the  hour,  with 
Anne,  touching  their  brother,  and  what  they  must  make 
him  do,  and  where  he  must  go  with  them,  and  in  what 
they  could  oblige  him  most.  The  real  sister  was  less  active 
than  her  fiiend,  in  mind  and  body,  and  she  listened  to  all 
these  schemes  and  notions  with  a  quiet  submission  that 
was  not  entirely  1'ree  from  wonder. 

The  result  of  all  this  intercourse  was  to  awaken  a  feeling 
between  Mark  and  Bridget,  that  was  far  more  profound 
than  might  have  been  thought  in  breasts  so  young,  and 
which  coloured  their  future  lives.  Mark  first  became 
conscious  of  the  strength  of  this  feeling  when  he  lost  sight 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  17 

of  the  Capes,  and  fancied  the  dear  little  Bucks  county  girl 
he  had  left  behind  him,  talking  with  his  sister  of  his  own 
absence  and  risks.  But  Mark  had  too  much  of  the  true 
spirit  of  a  sailor  in  him,  to  pine,  or  neglect  his  duty ;  and, 
long  ere  the  ship  had  doubled  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  he 
had  become  an  active  and  handy  lad  aloft.  When  the  ship 
reached  the  China  seas,  he  actually  took  his  trick  at  the 
helm. 

As  was  usual  in  that  day,  the  voyage  of  the  Rancocus 
lasted  about  a  twelvemonth.  If  John  Chinaman  were  only 
one-half  as  active  as  Jonathan  Restless,  it  might  be  dis 
posed  of  in  about  one-fourth  less  time;  but  teas  are  not 
transported  along  the  canals  of  the  Celestial  Empire  with 
anything  like  the  rapidity  with  which  wheat  was  sent  to 
market  over  the  rough  roads  of  the  Great  Republic,  in  the 
age  of  which  we  are  writing. 

When  Mark  Woolston  re-appeared  in  Bristol,  after  the 
arrival  of  the  Rancocus  below  had  been  known  there 
about  twenty-four  hours,  he  was  the  envy  of  all  the  lads  in 
the  place,  and  the  admiration  of  most  of  the  girls.  There 
he  was,  a  tall,  straight,  active,  well-made,  well-grown  and 
decidedly  handsome  lad  of  seventeen,  who  had  doubled 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  seen  foreign  parts,  and  had  a  real 
India  handkerchief  hanging  out  of  each  pocket  of  a  blue 
round-about  of  superfine  cloth,  besides  one  around  his  half- 
open  well-formed  throat,  that  was  carelessly  tied  in  a  true 
sailor  knot!  The  questions  he  had  to  answer,  and  did 
answer,  about  whales,  Chinese  feet,  and  "  mountain  waves  !" 
Although  Bristol  lies  on  a  navigable  river,  up  and  down 
which  frigates  had  actually  been  seen  to  pass  in  the  revo 
lution,  it  was  but  little  that  its  people  knew  of  the  ocean. 
Most  of  the  worthy  inhabitants  of  the  place  actually  fancied 
that  the  waves  of  the  sea  were  as  high  as  mountains,  though 
their  notions  of  the  last  were  not  very  precise,  there  being 
no  elevations  in  that  part  of  the  country  fit  even  for  a  wind 
mill. 

But  Mark  cared  little  for  these  interrogatories.  He  was 
happy;  happy  enough,  at  being  the  object  of  so  much  at 
tention;  happier  still  in  the  bosom  of  a  family  of  which  he 
had  always  been  the  favourite  and  was  now  the  pride ;  and 
happiest  of  all  when  he  half  ravished  a  kiss  from  the  blush- 


18  THECEATJ5R; 

ing  cheek  of  Bridget  Yardley.  Twelve  months  had  done 
a  great  deal  for  each  of  the  young  couple.  If  they  had  not 
quite  made  a  man  of  Mark,  they  had  made  him  manly,  and 
his  soi-disant  sister  wondered  that  any  one  could  be  so 
much  improved  by  a  sea-faring  life.  As  for  Bridget,  her 
self,  she  was  just  bursting  into  young  womanhood,  resem 
bling  the  bud  as  its  leaves  of  green  are  opening  to  permit 
those  of  the  deepest  rose-coloured  tint  to  be  seen,  before 
they  expand  into  the  full-blown  flower.  Mark  was  more 
than  delighted,  he  was  fascinated  ;  and  young  as  they  were, 
the  month  he  passed  at  home  sufficed  to  enable  him  to  tell 
his  passion,  and  to  obtain  a  half-ready,  half-timid  accept 
ance  of  the  offer  of  his  hand.  All  this  time,  the  parents 
of  these  very  youthful  lovers  were  as  profoundly  ignorant 
of  what  was  going  on,  as  their  children  were  unobservant 
of  the  height  to  which  professional  competition  had  carried 
hostilities  between  their  respective  parents.  Doctors 
Woolston  and  Yardley  no  longer  met  even  in  consultations; 
or,  if  they  did  meet  in  the  house  of  some  patient  whose 
patronage  was  of  too  much  value  to  be  slighted,  it  was  only 
to  dispute,  and  sometimes  absolutely  to  quarrel. 

At  the  end  of  one  short  month,  however,  Mark  was  once 
more  summoned  to  his  post  on  board  the  Rancocus,  tem 
porarily  putting  an  end  to  his  delightful  interviews  with 
Bridget.  The  lovers  had  made  Anne  their  confidant,  and 
she,  well-meaning  girl,  seeing  no  sufficient  reason  why  the 
son  of  one  respectable  physician  should  not  be  a  suitable 
match  for  the  daughter  of  another  respectable  physician, 
encouraged  them  in  their  vows  of  constancy,  and  pledges 
to  become  man  and  wife  at  a  future,  but  an  early  day. 
To  some  persons  all  this  may  seem  exceedingly  improper, 
as  well  as  extremely  precocious;  but  the  truth  compels  U3 
to  say,  that  its  impropriety  was  by  no  means  as  obvious  as 
its  precocity.  The  latter  it  certainly  was,  though  Mark 
had  shot  up  early,  and  was  a  man  at  a  time  of  life  when 
lads,  in  less  genial  climates,  scarcely  get  tails  to  their  coats ; 
but  its  impropriety  must  evidently  be  measured  by  the 
habits  of  the  state  of  society  in  which  the  parties  were 
brought  up,  and  by  the  duties  that  had  been  inculcated. 
In  America,  then,  as  now,  but  little  heed  was  taken  by 
parents,  more  especially  in  what  may  be  called  the  middle 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  19 

classes,  concerning  the  connections  thus  formed  by  their 
children.  So  long  as  the  parties  were  moral,  bore  good 
characters,  had  nothing  particular  against  them,  and  were 
of  something  near  the  same  social  station,  little  else  was 
asked  for ;  or,  if  more  were  actually  required,  it  was  usu 
ally  when  it  was  too  late,  and  after  the  young  people  had 
got  themselves  too  deeply  in  love  to  allow  ordinary  pru 
dential  reasons  to  have  their  due  force. 

Mark  went  to  sea  this  time,  dragging  after  him  a 
"  lengthening  chain,"  but,  nevertheless,  filled  with  hope. 
His  years  forbade  much  despondency,  and,  while  he  re 
mained  as  constant  as  if  he  had  been  a  next- door  neigh 
bour,  he  was  buoyant,  and  the  life  of  the  whole  crew,  after 
the  first  week  out.  This  voyage  was  not  direct  to  Canton, 
like  the  first;  but  the  ship  took  a  cargo  of  sugar  to  Am 
sterdam,  and  thence  went  to  London,  where  she  got  a 
freight  for  Cadiz.  The  war  of  the  French  Revolution 
was  now  blazing  in  all  the  heat  of  its  first  fires,  and  Ame 
rican  bottoms  were  obtaining  a  large  portion  of  the  carry 
ing  trade  of  the  world.  Captain  Crutchely  h<\d  orders  to 
keep  the  ship  in  Europe,  making  the  most  o.  her,  until  a 
certain  sum  in  Spanish  dollars  could  be  collected,  when 
he  was  to  fill  up  with  provisions  and  water,  and  again 
make  the  best  of  his  way  to  Canton.  In  obeying  these 
instructions,  he  went  from  port  to  port;  and,  as  a  sort  of 
consequence  of  having  Quaker  owners,  turning  his  peace 
ful  character  to  great  profit,  thus  giving  Mark  many  op 
portunities  of  seeing  as  much  of  what  is  called  the  world, 
as  can  be  found  in  sea-ports.  Great,  indeed,  is  the  differ 
ence  between  places  that  are  merely  the  marts  of  commerce, 
and  those  that  are  really  political  capitals  of  large  coun 
tries  !  No  one  can  be  aware  of,  or  can  fully  appreciate 
the  many  points  of  difference  that,  in  reality,  exist  between 
such  places,  who  has  not  seen  each,  and  that  sufficiently 
near  to  be  familiar  with  both.  Some  places,  of  which 
London  is  the  most  remarkable  example,  enjoy  both  cha 
racters  ;  and,  when  this  occurs,  the  town  gets  to  possess  a 
tone  that  is  even  less  provincial  and  narrow,  if  possible, 
than  that  which  is  to  be  found  in  a  place  that  merely  re- 
joi-'ses  in  a  court.  This  it  is  which  renders  Naples,  insig 
nificant  as  its  commerce  comparatively  is,  superior  to  Vi« 


20  THE   CRATER; 

enna,  and  Genoa  to  Florence.  While  it  would  be  folly  to 
pretend  that  Mark,  in  his  situation,  obtained  the  most  ac 
curate  notions  imaginable  of  all  he  saw  and  heard,  in  his 
visits  to  Amsterdam,  London,  Cadiz,  Bordeaux,  Marseilles, 
Leghorn,  Gibraltar,  arid  two  or  three  other  ports  that  might 
be  mentioned  and  to  which  he  went,  he  did  glean  a  good 
deal,  some  of  which  was  useful  to  him  in  after-life.  He 
lost  no  small  portion  of  the  provincial  rust  of  home,  more 
over,  arid  began  to  understand  the  vast  difference  between 
"  seeing  the  world"  and  "  going  to  meeting  and  going  to 
mill/'*  In  addition  to  these  advantages,  Mark  was  trans 
ferred  from  the  forecastle  to  the  cabin  before  the  ship 
sailed  for  Canton.  The  practice  of  near  two  years  had 
made  him  a  very  tolerable  sailor,  and  his  previous  educa 
tion  made  the  study  of  navigation  easy  to  him.  In  that 
day  there  was  a  scarcity  of  officers  in  America,  and  a  young 
man  of  Mark's  advantages,  physical  and  moral,  was  certain 
to  get  on  rapidly,  provided  he  only  behaved  well.  It  is 
not  at  all  surprising,  therefore,  that  our  young  sailor  got  to 
be  the  second-mate  of  the  Rancocus  before  he  had  quite 
completed  his  eighteenth  year. 

The  voyage  from  London  to  Canton,  and  thence  home  to 
Philadelphia,  consumed  about  ten  months.  The  Rancocus 
was  a  fast  vessel,  but  she  could  not  impart  her  speed  to  the 
Chinamen.  It  followed  that  Mark  wanted  but  a  few  weeks 
of  being  nineteen  yea-rs  old  the  day  his  ship  passed  Cape 
May,  and,  what  was  more,  he  had  the  promise  of  Captain 
Crutchely,  of  sailing  with  him,  as  his  first  officer,  in  the  next 
voyage.  With  that  promise  in  his  mind,  Mark  hastened 
up  the  river  to  Bristol,  as  soon  as  he  was  clear  of  the  vessel. 

*  This  last  phrase  has  often  caused  the  writer  to  smile,  when 
he  has  heard  a  countryman  say,  with  a  satisfied  air,  as  is  so  often 
the  case  in  this  good  republic,  that  "such  or  such  a  thing  here  is 
good  enough  for  m«;"  meaning  that  he  questions  if  there  be  any 
thing  of  the  sort  that  is  better  anywhere  else.  It  was  uttered 
many  years  since,  by  a  shrewd  Quaker,  in  West-Chester,  who  was 
contending  with  a  neighbour  on  a  subject  that  the  other  endea 
voured  to  defend  by  alluding  to  the  extent  of  his  own  observation. 
"Oh,  yes,  Josy,"  answered  the  Friend,  "  thee  's  been  to  meeting 
and  thee  's  been  to  mill,  and  thee  knows  all  about  it !"  America 
is  full  of  travellers  who  have  been  to  meeting  and  who  have  been 
to  mill.  This  it  is  which  makes  it  unnecessarily  provincial. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  21 

Bridget  Yardley  had  now  fairly  budded,  to  pursue  the 
figure  with  which  we  commenced  the  description  of  this 
blooming  flower,  and,  if  not  actually  expanded  into  perfect 
womanhood,  was  so  near  it  as  to  show  beyond  all  question 
that  the  promises  of  her  childhood  were  to  be  very  amply 
redeemed.  Mark  found  her  in  black,  however;  or,  in 
mourning  for  her  mother.  An  only  child,  this  serious  loss 
had  thrown  her  more  than  ever  in  the  way  of  Anne,  the 
parents  on  both  sides  winking  at  an  association  that  could 
do  no  harm,  and  which  might  prove  so  useful.  It  was 
very  different,  however,  with  the  young  sailor.  He  had 
not  been  a  fortnight  at  home,  and  getting  to  be  intimate 
with  the  roof-tree  of  Doc-tor  Yardley,  before  that  person 
saw  fit  to  pick  a  quarrel  with  him,  and  to  forbid  him  his 
house.  As  the  dispute  was  wholly  gratuitous  on  the  part 
of  the  Doctor,  Mark  behaving  with  perfect  propiiety  on  the 
occasion,  it  may  be  well  to  explain  its  real  cause.  The 
fact  was,  that  Bridget  was  an  heiress ;  if  not  on  a  very 
large  scale,  still  an  heiress,  and,  what  was  more,  unalter 
ably  so  in  right  of  her  mother ;  and  the  thought  that  a  son 
of  his  competitor,  Doctor  Woolston,  should  profit  by  this 
fact,  was  utterly  insupportable  to  him.  Accordingly  he 
quarrelled  with  Mark,  the  instant  he  was  apprised  of  the 
character  of  his  attentions,  and  forbade  him  the  house. 
To  do  Mark  justice,  he  knew  nothing  of  Bridget's  worldly 
possessions.  That  she  was  beautiful,  and  warm-hearted, 
and  frank,  and  sweet-tempered,  and  feminine,  and  affec 
tionate,  he  both  saw  and  felt;  but  beyond  this  he  neither 
saw  anything,  nor  cared  about  seeing  anything.  The 
young  sailor  was  as  profoundly  ignorant  that  Bridget  was 
the  actual  owner  of  certain  three  per  cents,  that  brought 
twelve  hundred  a  year,  as  if  she  did  not  own  a  '  copper/ 
as  it  was  the  fashion  of  that  period  to  say,  *  cents'  being  then 
very  little,  if  at  all,  used.  Nor  did  he  know  anything  of 
the  farm  she  had  inherited  from  her  mother,  or  of  the  store 
in  town,  that  brought  three  hundred  and  fifty  more  in  rent. 
It  is  true  that  some  allusions  were  made  to  these  matters 
by  Doctor  Yardley,  in  his  angry  comments  on  the  Wool- 
ston  family  generally,  Anne  always  excepted,  and  in  whose 
iavour  he  made  a  salvo,  even  in  the  height  of  his  denun 
ciation*.  Still,  Mark  thought  so  much  of  that  which  was 


22  THE  CRATER; 

really  estimable  and  admirable  in  Bridget,  and  so  little  of 
anything  mercenary,  that  even  after  these  revelations  he 
could  not  comprehend  the  causes  of  Doctor  Yardley's  harsh 
treatment  of  him.  During  the  whole  scene,  which  was 
purposely  enacted  in  the  presence  of  his  wondering  and 
trembling  daughter,  Mark  behaved  perfectly  well.  He  had 
a  respect  for  the  Doctor's  years,  as  well  as  for  Bridget's 
father,  and  would  not  retort.  After  waiting  as  long  as  he 
conceived  waiting  could  be  of  any  use,  he  seized  his  hat, 
and  left  the  room  with  an  air  of  resentment  that  Bridget 
construed  into  the  expression  of  an  intention  never  to  speak 
to  any  of  tiem  again.  But  Mark  Woolston  was  governed 
by  no  such  design,  as  the  sequel  will  show. 


CHAPTER  II. 

"She 's  not  fourteen." 

"  I  '11  lay  fourteen  of  my  teeth, 

And  yet,  to  my  teen  be  it  spoken,  I  have  but  four,— 
She  is  not  fourteen." — 

Romeo  and  Juliet. 

DIVINE  wisdom  has  commanded  us  to  "  Honour  your 
father  and  your  mother."  Observant  travellers  affirm  that 
less  respect  is  paid  to  parents  in  America,  than  is  usual  in 
Christian  nations — we  say  Christian  nations;  for  many  of 
the  heathen,  the  Chinese  for  instance,  worship  them,  though 
probably  with  an  allegorical  connection  that  we  do  not 
understand.  That  the  parental  tie  is  more  loose  in  this 
country  than  in  most  others  we  believe,  and  there  is  a  rea 
son  to  be  found  for  it  in  the  migratory  habits  of  the  people, 
and  in  the  general  looseness  in  all  the  ties  that  connect 
men  with  the  past.  The  laws  on  the  subject  of  matrimony, 
moreover,  are  so  very  lax,  intercourse  is  so  simple  and  has 
so  many  facilities,  and  the  young  of  the  two  sexes  are  left 
BO  much  to  themselves,  that  it  is  no  wonder  children  form 
that  connection  so  often  without  reflection  and  contrary  to 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  23 

the  wishes  of  their  friends.  Still,  the  law  of  God  is  there, 
and  we  are  among  those  who  believe  that  a  neglect  of  its 
mandates  is  very  apt  to  bring  its  punishment,  even  in  this 
world,  and  we  are  inclined  to  think  that  much  of  that 
which  Mark  and  Bridget  subsequently  suffered,  was  in 
consequence  of  acting  directly  in  the  face  of  the  wishes 
and  injunctions  of  their  parents. 

The  scene  which  had  taken  place  under  the  roof  of 
Doctor  Yardley  was  soon  known  under  that  of  Doctor 
Woolston.  Although  the  last  individual  was  fully  aware 
that  Bridget  was  what  was  then  esteemed  rich,  at  Bristol, 
he  cared  not  for  her  money.  The  girl  he  liked  well  enough, 
and  in  secret  even  admired  her  as  much  as  he  could  find 
it  in  his  heart  to  admire  anything  of  Doctor  Yardley's ;  but 
the  indignity  was  one  he  was  by  no  means  inclined  to  over 
look,  and,  in  his  turn,  he  forbade  all  intercourse  between 
the  girls.  These  two  bitter  pills,  thus  administered  by  the 
village  doctors  to  their  respective  patients,  made  the  young 
people  very  miserable.  Bridget  loved  Anne  almost  as 
much  as  she  loved  Mark,  and  she  began  to  pine  and  alter 
in  her  appearance,  in  a  way  to  alarm  her  father.  In  order 
to  divert  her  mind,  he  sent  her  to  town,  to  the  care  of  an 
aunt,  altogether  forgetting  that  Mark's  ship  lay  at  the 
wharves  of  Philadelphia,  and  that  he  could  not  have  sent 
his  daughter  to  any  place,  out  of  Bristol,  where  the  young 
man  would  be  so  likely  to  find  her.  This  danger  the  good 
doctor  entirely  overlooked,  or,  if  he  thought  of  it  at  all,  he 
must  have  fancied  that  his  sister  would  keep  a  sharp  eye 
on  the  movements  of  the  young  sailor,  and  forbid  him  her 
house,  too. 

Everything  turned  out  as  the  Doctor  ought  to  have  ex 
pected.  When  Mark  joined  his  ship,  of  which  he  was  now 
the  first  officer,  he  sought  Bridget  and  found  her.  The 
aunt,  however,  administered  to  him  the  second  potion  of 
the  same  dose  that  her  brother  had  originally  dealt  out, 
and  gave  him  to  understand  that  his  presence  in  Front 
street  was  not  desired.  This  irritated  both  the  young 
people,  Bridget  being  far  less  disposed  to  submit  to  her 
aunt  than  to  her  father,  and  they  met  clandestinely  in  the 
streets.  A  week  or  two  of  this  intercourse  brought  mat 
ters  to  a  crisis,  and  Bridget  consented  to  a  private  mar- 


24  THE   CRATER; 

riage.  The  idea  of  again  going  to  sea,  leaving  his  be« 
trothed  entirely  in  the  hands  of  those  who  disliked  him  for 
his  father's  sake,  was  intolerable  to  Mark,  and  it  made  him 
so  miserable,  that  the  tenderness  of  the  deeply  enamoured 
girl  could  not  withstand  his  appeals.  They  agreed  to  get 
married,  but  to  keep  their  union  a  secret  until  Mark  should 
become  of  age,  when  it  was  hoped  he  would  be  in  a  con 
dition,  in  every  point  of  view,  openly  to  claim  his  wife. 

A  thing  of  this  sort,  once  decided  on,  is  easily  enough 
put  in  execution  in  America.  Among  Mark's  college 
friends  was  one  who  was  a  few  years  older  than  himself, 
and  who  had  entered  the  ministry.  This  young  man  was 
then  acting  as  a  sort  of  missionary  among  the  seamen  of 
the  port,  and  he  had  fallen  in  the  way  of  the  young  lover 
the  very  first  day  of  his  return  to  his  ship.  It  was  an  easy 
matter  to  work  on  the  good  nature  of  this  easy-minded 
man,  who,  on  hearing  of  the  ill  treatment  offered  to  his 
friend,  was  willing  enough  to  perform  the  ceremony. 
Everything  being  previously  arranged,  Mark  and  Bridget 
were  married,  early  one  morning,  during  the  time  the  latter 
was  out,  in  company  with  a  female  friend  of  about  her  own 
age,  to  take  what  her  aunt  believed  was  her  customary 
walk  before  breakfast.  Philadelphia,  in  1796,  was  not  the 
town  it  is  to-day.  It  then  lay,  almost  entirely,  on  the 
shores  of  the  Delaware,  those  of  the  Schuylkill  being  com 
pletely  in  the  country.  What  was  more,  the  best  quarters 
were  still  near  the  river,  and  the  distance  between  the 
Rancocus — meaning  Mark's  ship,  and  not  the  creek  of 
that  name — and  the  house  of  Bridget's  aunt,  was  but  tri 
fling.  The  ceremony  took  place  in  the  cabin  of  the  vessel 
just  named,  which,  now  that  the  captain  was  ashore  in  his 
own  house,  Mark  had  all  to  himself,  no  second-mate  having 
been  shipped,  and  which  was  by  no  means  an  inappropriate 
place  for  the  nuptials  of  a  pair  like  that  which  our  young 
people  turned  out  to  be,  in  the  end. 

The  Rancocus,  though  not  a  large,  was  a  very  fine, 
Philadelphia-built  ship,  then  the  best  vessels  of  the  coun 
try.  She  was  of  a  little  less  than  four  hundred  tons  in 
measurement,  but  she  had  a  very  neat  and  commodious 
poop-calm.  Captain  Crutchely  had  a  thrifty  wife,  who 
had  contributed  her  full  share  to  render  her  husband  com 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  25 

fortable,  and  Bridget  thought  that  the  room  in  which  she 
was  united  to  Mark  was  one  of  the  prettiest  she  had  ever 
seen.  The  reader,  however,  is  not  to  imagine  it  a  cabin 
oinamented  with  marble  columns,  rose-wood,  and  the  ma 
ples,  as  so  often  happens  now-a-days.  No  such  extrava 
gance  was  dreamed  of  fifty  years  ago;  but,  as  far  as  judi 
cious  arrangements,  neat  joiner's  work,  and  appropriate 
furniture  went,  the  cabin  of  the  Rancocus  was  a  very  re 
spectable  little  room.  The  circumstance  that  it  was  on 
deck,  contributed  largely  to  its  appearance  and  comfort, 
sunken  cabins,  or  those  below  decks,  being  necessarily 
much  circumscribed  in  small  ships,  in  consequence  of 
being  placed  in  a  part  of  the  vessel  that  is  contracted  in 
its  dimensions  under  water,  in  order  to  help  their  sailing 
qualities. 

The  witnesses  of  the  union  of  our  hero  and  heroine  were 
the  female  friend  of  Bridget  named,  the  officiating  clergy 
man,  and  one  seaman  who  had  sailed  with  the  bridegroom 
in  all  his  voyages,  and  who  was  now  retained  on  board  the 
vessel  as  a  ship-keeper,  intending  to  go  out  in  her  again, 
as  soon  as  she  should  be  ready  for  sea.  The  name  of  this 
mariner  was  Betts,  or  Bob  Betts  as  he  was  commonly 
called ;  and  as  he  acts  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  events  to 
be  recorded,  it  may  be  well  to  say  a  word  or  two  more  of 
his  history  and  character.  Bob  Betts  was  a  Jerseyman  ; — 
or,  as  he  would  have  pronounced  the  word  himself,  a  Jar- 
seyman — in  the  American  meaning  of  the  word,  however, 
and  not  in  the  English.  Bob  was  born  in  Cape  May 
county,  and  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  United  States  of 
America.  At  the  period  of  which  we  are  now  writing,  he 
must  have  been  about  five-and-thirty,  and  seemingly  a  con 
firmed  bachelor.  The  windows  of  Bob's  father's  house 
looked  out  upon  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  he  snuffed  sea 
air  from  the  hour  of  his  birth.  At  eight  years  of  age  he 
was  placed,  as  cabin-boy,  on  board  a  coaster;  and  from 
that  time  down  to  the  moment  when  he  witnessed  the  mar 
riage  ceremony  between  Mark  and  Bridget,  he  had  been  a 
sailor.  Throughout  the  whole  war  of  the  revolution  Bob 
had  served  in  the  navy,  in  some  vessel  or  other,  and  with 
great  good  luck,  never  having  been  made  a  prisoner  of 
war.  In  connection  with  this  circumstance  was  one  of 


26  THE  CRATER; 

the  besetting  weaknesses  of  his  character.  As  often  hap* 
pens  to  men  of  no  very  great  breadth  of  views,  Bob  had  a 
notion  that  that  which  he  had  so  successfully  escaped,  viz. 
captivity,  other  men  too  might  have  escaped  had  they  been 
equally  as  clever.  Thus  it  was  that  he  had  an  ill-concealed, 
or  only  half-concealed  contempt  for  such  seamen  as  suffered 
themselves,  at  any  time  or  under  any  circumstances,  to  fall 
into  the  enemies'  hands.  On  all  other  subjects  Bob  wai 
not  only  rational,  but  a  very  discreet  and  shrewd  fellow, 
though  on  that  he  was  often  harsh,  and  sometimes  absurd 
But  the  best  men  have  their  weakness,  and  this  was  Bot 
Betts's. 

Captain  Crutchely  had  picked  up  Bob,  just  after  the 
peace  of  1783,  and  had  kept  him  with  him  ever  since.  I* 
was  to  Bob  that  he  had  committed  the  instruction  of  Mark, 
when  the  latter  first  joined  the  ship,  and  from  Bob  the 
youth  had  got  his  earliest  notions  of  seamanship.  In  his 
calling  Bob  was  full  of  resources,  and,  as  often  happens 
with  the  American  sailor,  he  was  even  handy  at  a  great 
many  other  things,  and  particularly  so  with  whatever  re 
lated  to  practical  mechanics.  Then  he  was  of  vast  phy 
sical  force,  standing  six  feet  two,  in  his  stockings,  and  was 
round-built  and  solid.  Bob  had  one  sterling  quality — he 
was  as  fast  a  friend  as  ever  existed.  In  this  respect  he 
was  a  model  of  fidelity,  never  seeing  a  fault  in  those  he 
loved,  or  a  good  quality  in  those  he  disliked.  His  attach 
ment  to  Mark  was  signal,  and  he  looked  on  the  promotion 
of  the  young  man  much  as  he  would  have  regarded  prefer 
ment  that  befel  himself.  In  the  last  voyage  he  had  told 
the  people  in  the  forecastle  "  That  young  Mark  Woolston 
would  make  a  thorough  sea-dog  in  time,  and  now  he  had 
got  to  be  Mr.  Woolston,  he  expected  great  things  of  him. 
The  happiest  day  of  my  life  will  be  that  on  which  I  can 
ship  in  a  craft  commanded  by  Captain  Mark  Woolston. 
I  teached  him,  myself,  how  to  break  the  first  sea-biscuit  he 
ever  tasted,  and  next  day  he  could  do  it  as  well  as  any  on 
us !  You  see  how  handy  and  quick  he  is  about  a  vessel's 
decks,  shipmates;  a  ra'al  rouser  at  a  weather  earin' — well, 
when  he  first  come  aboard  here,  and  that  was  little  more 
than  two  years  ago,  the  smell  of  tar  would  almost  make 
him  swound  away."  The  latter  assertion  was  one  of  Bob's 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  27 

embellishments,  for  Mark  was  never  either  lackadaisical 
or  very  delicate.  The  young  man  cordially  returned  Bob's 
regard,  and  the  two  were  sincere  friends  without  any 
phrases  on  the  subject. 

Bob  Betts  was  the  only  male  witness  of  the  marriage 
between  Mark  Woolston  and  Bridget  Yardley,  with  the 
exception  of  the  officiating  clergyman ;  as  Mary  Bromley 
was  the  only  female.  Duplicate  certificates,  however,  were 
given  to  the  young  couple,  Mark  placing  his  in  his  writ 
ing-desk,  and  Bridget  hers  in  the  bosom  of  her  dress. 
Five  minutes  after  the  ceremony  was  ended,  the  whole 
party  separated,  the  girls  returning  to  their  respective  re 
sidences,  and  the  clergyman  going  his  way,  leaving  the 
mate  and  the  ship-keeper  together  on  the  vessel's  deck. 
The  latter  did  not  speak,  so  long  as  he  saw  the  bride 
groom's  eyes  fastened  on  the  light  form  of  the  bride,  as  the 
latter  went  swiftly  up  the  retired  wharf  where  the  ship  was 
lying,  on  her  way  to  Front  street,  accompanied  by  her 
young  friend.  But,  no  sooner  had  Bridget  turned  a  cor 
ner,  and  Bob  saw  that  the  attraction  was  no  longer  in  view, 
than  he  thought  it  becoming  to  put  in  a  word. 

"A  trim-built  and  light-sailing  craft,  Mr.  Woolston," 
he  said,  turning  over  the  quid  in  his  mouth  ;  "  one  of  these 
days  she  '11  make  a  noble  vessel  to  command." 

"  She  is  my  captain,  and  ever  will  be,  Bob,"  returned 
Mark.  "  But  you  '11  be  silent  concerning  what  has 


"  Ay,  ay,  sir.  It  is  not  my  business  to  keep  a  log  for 
all  the  women  in  the  country  to  chatter  about,  like  so  many 
monkeys  that  have  found  a  bag  of  nuts.  But  what  was 
the  meaning  of  the  parson's  saying,  '  with  all  my  worldly 
goods  I  thee  endow' — does  that  make  you  any  richer,  or 
any  poorer,  sir  ?" 

"  Neither,"  answered  Mark,  smiling.  "  It  leaves  me 
just  where  I 'was,  Bob,  and  where  I  am  likely  to  be  for 
some  time  to  come,  I  fear." 

"And  has  the  young  woman  nothing  herself,  sir?  Some 
times  a  body  picks  up  a  comfortable  chest-full  with  these 
•ort  of  things,  as  they  tell  me,  sir." 

"  I  believe  Bridget  is  as  poor  as  I  am  myself,  Bob,  and 
that  is  saying  all  that  can  be  said  on  such  a  point.  How- 


28  THECRATER; 

ever,  1  Jve  secured  her  now,  and  two  years  hence  I  '11  claim 
her,  if  she  has  not  a  second  gown  to  wear.  I  dare  say  the 
old  man  will  be  for  turning  her  adrift  with  as  little  as  pos 
sible." 

All  this  was  a  proof  of  Mark's  entire  disinterestedness. 
He  did  not  know  that  his  young  bride  had  quite  thirty 
thousand  dollars  in  reversion,  or  in  one  sense  in  possession, 
although  she  could  derive  no  benefit  from  it  until  she  was 
of  age,  or  married,  and  past  her  eighteenth  year.  This 
fact  her  husband  did  not  learn  for  several  days  after  his 
marriage,  when  his  bride  communicated  it  to  him,  with  a 
proposal  that  he  should  quit  the  sea  and  remain  with  her 
for  life.  Mark  was  very  much  in  love,  but  this  scheme 
scarce  afforded  him  the  satisfaction  that  one  might  have 
expected.  He  was  attached  to  his  profession,  and  scarce 
relished  the  thought  of  being  dependent  altogether  on  his 
wife  for  the  means  of  subsistence.  The  struggle  between 
love  and  pride  was  great,  but  Mark,  at  length,  yielded  to 
Bridget's  blandishments,  tenderness  and  tears.  They  could 
only  meet  at  the  house  of  Mary  Bromley,  the  bride's-maid, 
but  then  the  interviews  between  them  were  as  frequent  as 
Mark's  duty  would  allow.  The  result  was  that  Bridget 
prevailed,  and  the  young  husband  went  up  to  Bristol  and 
candidly  related  all  that  had  passed,  thus  revealing,  in  less 
than  a  week,  a  secret  which  it  was  intended  should  remain 
hid  for  at  least  two  years. 

Doctor  Woolston  was  sorely  displeased,  at  first;  but  the 
event  had  that  about  it  which  would  be  apt  to  console  a 
parent.  Bridget  was  not  only  young,  and  affectionate,  and 
beautiful,  and  truthful;  but,  according  to  the  standard  of 
Bristol,  she  was  rich.  There  was  consolation  in  all  this, 
notwithstanding  professional  rivalry  and  personal  dislikes. 
We  are  not  quite  certain  that  he  did  not  feel  a  slight  gra 
tification  at  the  thought  of  his  son's  enjoying  the  fortune 
which  his  rival  had  received  from  his  wife,  and  which,  but 
for  the  will  of  the  grandfather,  would  have  been  enjoyed 
by  that  rival  himself.  Nevertheless,  the  good  Doctor  did 
his  duty  in  the  premises.  He  communicated  the  news  of 
the  marriage  to  Doctor  Yardley  in  a  very  civilly-worded 
note,  which  left  a  fair  opening  for  a  settlement  of  all  diffi 
culties,  had  the  latter  been  sc  pleased.  The  latter  did  not 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  29 

so  please,  however,  but  exploded  in  a  terrible  burst  of  pas 
sion,  which  almost  carried  him  off  in  a  fit  of  apoplexy. 

Escaping  all  physical  dangers,  in  the  end,  Doctor  Yard- 
ley  went  immediately  to  Philadelphia,  and  brought  his 
daughter  home.  Both  Mark  and  Bridget  now  felt  that 
they  had  offended  against  one  of  the  simplest  commands 
of  God.  They  had  not  honoured  their  father  and  their 
mother,  and  even  thus  early  came  the  consciousness  of 
their  offence.  It  was  in  Mark's  power,  however,  to  go  and 
claim  his  wife,  and  remove  her  to  his  father's  house,  not 
withstanding  his  minority  and  that  of  Bridget.  In  this  last 
respect,  the  law  offered  no  obstacle ;  but  the  discretion  of 
Doctor  Woolston  did.  This  gentleman,  through  the  agency 
of  a  common  friend,  had  an  interview  with  his  competitor, 
and  they  talked  the  matter  over  in  a  tolerably  composed 
and  reasonable  temper.  Both  the  parents,  as  medical  men, 
agreed  that  it  would  be  better  that  the  young  couple  should 
not  live  together  for  two  or  three  years,  the  very  tender 
age  of  Bridget,  in  particular,  rendering  this  humane,  as 
well  as  discreet.  Nothing  was  said  of  the  fortune,  which 
mollified  Doctor  Yardley  a  good  deal,  since  he  would  be 
left  to  manage  it,  or  at  least  to  receive  the  income  so  long 
as  no  legal  claimant  interfered  with  his  control.  Elderly 
gentlemen  submit  very  easily  to  this  sort  of  influence. 
Then,  Doctor  Woolston  was  exceedingly  polite,  and  spoke 
to  his  rival  of  a  difficult  case  in  his  own  practice,  as  if  in 
directly  to  ask  an  opinion  of  his  competitor.  All  this  con 
tributed  to  render  the  interview  more  amicable  than  had 
been  hoped,  and  the  parties  separated,  if  not  friends,  at 
least  with  an  understanding  on  the  subject  of  future  pro 
ceedings. 

It  was  decided  that  Mark  should  continue  in  the  Ran- 
cocus  for  another  voyage.  It  was  known  the  ship  was  to 
proceed  to  some  of  the  islands  of  the  Pacific,  in  quest  of 
a  cargo  of  sandal-wood  and  beche-le-mar,  for  the  Chinese 
market,  and  that  her  next  absence  from  home  would  be 
longer,  even,  than  her  last.  By  the  time  the  vessel  re 
turned,  Mark  would  be  of  age,  and  fit  to  command  a  ship 
himself,  should  it  be  thought  expedient  for  him  to  continue 
in  his  profession.  During  the  period  the  vessel  still  re 
mained  in  port,  Mark  was  to  pay  occasional  visits  to  his 


30  THE   CRATER; 

wife,  though  not  to  live  with  her;  bat  the  young  coaple 
might  correspond  by  letter,  33  often  as  they  pleased.  Such 
was  an  outline  of  the  treaty  made  between  the  high  con 
tracting  parties. 

In  making  th«e  arrangements,  Doctor  Yardley  was 
partly  influenced  by  a  real  paternal  interest  in  the  welfare 
of  his  daughter,  who  he  thought  altogether  too  young  to 
enter  on  the  duties  and  cares  of  the  married  life.  Below 
the  surface,  however,  existed  an  indefinite  hope  that  some 
thing  might  yet  occur  to  prevent  the  consummation  of  this 
most  unfortunate  union,  as  he  deemed  the  marriage  to  be, 
and  thus  enable  birn  to  get  rid  of  the  hateful  connection 
altogether.  How  this  was  to  happen,  the  worthy  doctor 
certainly  did  not  know.  This  was  because  lie  lived  in 
H96,  instead  of  in  1847.  Now-a-days,  nothing  is  easier 
than  to  separate  a  man  from  his  wife,  unless  it  be  to  obtain 
civic  honours  for  a  murderer.  Doctor  Yardley,  at  the 
present  moment,  would  have  coolly  gone  to  work  to  get 
np  a  lamentable  tale  about  his  daughter's  fortune,  and 
youth,  and  her  not  knowing  her  own  mind  when  she  mar 
ried,  and  a  ship's  cabin,  and  a  few  other  embellishments 
of  that  sort,  when  the  worthy  and  benevolent  statesmen 
who  compose  the  different  legislatures  of  this  vast  Union 
would  have  been  ready  to  break  their  necks,  in  order  to 
pass  a  bill  of  divorce.  Had  there  been  a  child  or  two,  it 
would  have  made  no  great  difference,  for  means  would 
have  been  devised  to  give  the  custody  of  them  to  the  mo 
ther.  This  would  have  been  done,  quite  likely,  for  the 
first  five  years  of  the  lives  of  the  dear  little  things,  because 
the  children  would  naturally  require  a  mother's  care ;  and 
afterwards,  because  the  precocious  darlings,  at  the  mature 
age  of  seven,  would  declare,  in  open  court,  that  they  really 
loved  '  ma'  more  than  they  did  « pa !'  To  write  a  little 
plainly  on  a  very  important  subject,  we  are  of  opinion  that 
a  new  name  ought  to  be  adopted  for  the  form  of  govern 
ment  which  is  so  fast  creeping  into  this  country.  New 
things  require  new  names;  and,  were  Solomon  now  living, 
we  will  venture  if)  predict  two  things  of  him,  viz.  he 
change  his  mind  on  the  subject  of  novelties,  and  he  would 
'  go  to  congress.  As  for  the  new  name,  we  would 
respectfully  suggest  that  of  Gossipian,  in  lieu  of  that  of 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  31 

Republican,  gossip  fast  becoming  the  lever  that  moves 
everything  in  the  land.  The  newspapers,  true  to  their 
instincts  of  consulting  the  ruling  tastes,  deal  much  more 
in  gossip  than  they  deal  in  reason ;  the  courts  admit  it  as 
evidence ;  the  juries  receive  it  as  fact,  as  well  as  the  law ; 
and  as  for  the  legislatures,  let  a  piteous  tale  but  circulate 
freely  in  the  lobbies,  and  bearded  men,  like  Juliet  when  a 
child,  as  described  by  her  nurse,  will  "  stint  and  cry,  ayl" 
In  a  word,  principles  and  proof  are  in  much  less  esteem 
than  assertions  and  numbers,  backed  with  enough  of  which, 
anything  may  be  made  to  appear  as  legal,  or  even  consti 
tutional. 

But  neither  of  our  doctors  entered  into  all  these  matters. 
It  was  enough  for  them  that  the  affair  of  the  marriage  waa 
disposed  of,  for  a  time  at  least,  and  things  were  permitted 
to  drop  into  their  ancient  channels.  The  intercourse  be 
tween  Bridget  and  Anne  was  renewed,  just  as  if  nothing 
had  happened,  and  Mark's  letters  to  his  virgin  bride  were 
numerous,  and  filled  with  passion.  The  ship  was  '  taking 
in,'  and  he  could  only  leave  her  late  on  Saturday  afternoons, 
but  each  Sunday  he  contrived  to  pass  in  Bristol.  On  such 
occasions  he  saw  his  charming  wife  at  church,  and  ho 
walked  with  her  in  the  fields,  along  with  Anne  and  a  fa 
voured  admirer  of  hers,  of  an  afternoon,  returning  to  town 
in  season  to  be  at  his  post  on  the  opening  of  the  hatches, 
of  a  Monday  morning. 

In  less  than  a  month  after  the  premature  marriage  be 
tween  Mark  Woolston  and  Bridget  Yardley,  the  Rancocus 
cleared  for  the  Pacific  and  Canton.  The  bridegroom 
found  one  day  to  pass  in  Bristol,  and  Doctor  Yardley  so 
far  pitied  his  daughter's  distress,  as  to  consent  that  the 
two  girls  should  po  to  town,  under  his  own  care,  and  see 
the  young  man  off".  This  concession  was  received  with 
the  deepest  gratitude,  and  made  the  young  people  moment 
arily  very  happy.  The  doctor  even  consented  to  visit  the 
ship,  which  Captain  Crutchely,  laughing,  culled  St.  Mark's 
chapel,  in  consequence  of  the  religious  rite  which  had 
been  performed  on  board  her.  Mrs.  Crutchely  was  there, 
on  the  occasion  of  this  visit,  attending  to  her  husband's 
comforts,  by  fitting  curtains  to  his  berth,  and  looking  after 
matters  in  general  in  the  cabin;  and  divers  jokes  were 


32  THE  CRATER; 

ventured  by  the  honest  ship-master,  in  making  his  com 
ments  on,  and  in  giving  his  opinion  of  the  handy-work  of 
his  own  consort.  He  made  Bridget  blush  more  than  once, 
though  her  enduring  tenderness  in  behalf  of  Mark  induced 
her  to  sit  out  all  the  captain's  wit,  rather  than  shorten  a 
visit  so  precious,  one  moment. 

The  final  parting  was  an  hour  of  bitter  sorrow.  Even 
Mark's  young  heart,  manly,  and  much  disposed  to  do  his 
duty  as  he  was,  was  near  breaking:  while  Bridget  almost 
dissolved  in  tears.  They  could  not  but  think  how  long 
that  separation  was  to  last,  though  they  did  not  anticipate 
by  what  great  and  mysterious  events  it  was  to  be  prolonged. 
It  was  enough  for  them  that  they  were  to  live  asunder  two 
whole  years ;  and  two  whole  years  appear  like  an  age.  to 
those  who  have  not  yet  lived  their  four  lustrums.  But  the 
final  moment  must  and  did  arrive,  and  the  young  people 
were  compelled  to  tear  themselves  asunder,  though  the 
parting  was  like  that  of  soul  and  body.  The  bride  hung 
on  the  bridegroom's  neck,  as  the  tendril  clings  to  its  sup 
port,  until  removed  by  gentle  violence. 

Bridget  did  not  give  up  her  hold  upon  Mark  so  long  as 
even  his  vessel  remained  in  sight.  She  went  with  Anne, 
in  a  carriage,  as  low  as  the  Point,  and  saw  the  Rancocus 
pass  swiftly  down  the  river,  on  this  its  fourth  voyage,  bear 
ing  those  in  her  who  as  little  dreamed  of  their  fate,  as  the 
unconscious  woods  and  metals,  themselves,  of  which  the 
ship  was  constructed.  Mark  felt  his  heart  beat,  when  he 
saw  a  woman's  handkerchief  waving  to  him  from  the  shore, 
and  a  fresh  burst  of  tenderness  nearly  unmanned  him, 
when,  by  the  aid  of  the  glass,  he  recognised  the  sweet 
countenance  and  fairy  figure  of  Bridget.  Ten  minutes 
later,  distance  and  interposing  objects  separated  that  young 
couple  for  many  a  weary  day ! 

A  few  days  at  sea  restored  the  equanimity  of  Mark's 
feelings,  while  the  poignant  grief  of  Bridget  did  not  fail  to 
receive  the  solace  which  time  brings  to  sorrows  of  every 
degree  and  nature.  They  thought  of  each  other  often,  and 
tenderly ;  but,  the  pain  of  parting  over,  they  both  began 
to  look  forward  to  the  joys  of  meeting,  with  the  buoyancy 
and  illusions  that  hope  is  so  apt  to  impart  to  the  bosoms 
of  the  young  and  inexperienced.  Little  did  either  dream 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  33 

of  what  was  to  occur  before  their  eyes  were  to  be  again 
gladdened  with  the  sight  of  their  respective  forms. 

Mark  found  in  his  state-room — for,  in  the  Rancocus, 
the  cabin  was  fitted  with  four  neat  little  state-rooms,  one 
for  the  captain,  and  two  for  the  mates,  with  a  fourth  for 
the  supercargo — many  proofs  of  Bridget's  love  and  care. 
Mrs.  Crutchely,  herself,  though  so  much  longer  experienced, 
had  scarcely  looked  after  the  captain's  comfort  with  more 
judgment,  and  certainly  not  with  greater  solicitude,  than 
this  youthful  bride  had  expended  on  her  bridegroom's 
room.  In  that  day,  artists  were  not  very  numerous  in 
America,  nor  is  it  very  probable  that  Doctor  Yardley  would 
have  permitted  his  daughter  to  take  so  decided  a  step  aa 
to  sit  for  her  miniature  for  Mark's  possession ;  but  she  had 
managed  to  get  her  profile  cut,  and  to  have  it  framed,  and 
the  mate  discovered  it  placed  carefully  among  his  effects, 
when  only  a  week  out.  From  this  profile  Mark  derived 
the  greatest  consolation.  It  was  a  good  one,  and  Bridget 
happened  to  have  a  face  that  would  tdl  in  that  sort  of 
thing,  so  that  the  husband  had  no  difficulty  in  recognising 
the  wife,  in  this  little  image.  There  it  was,  with  the  very 
pretty  slight  turn  of  the  head  to  one  .side,  that  in  Bridget 
was  both  natural  and  graceful.  Mark  bpent  hours  in  gazing 
at  and  in  admiring  this  inanimate  shadow  of  his  bride, 
which  never  failed  to  recall  to  him  all  her  grace,  and  na 
ture,  and  tenderness  and  love,  though  it  could  not  convey 
any  direct  expression  of  her  animation  and  spirit. 

It  is  said  ships  have  no  Sundays.  The  meaning  of  this 
is  merely  that  a  vessel  must  perform  her  work,  week-days 
and  sabbaths,  day  and  night,  in  fair  or  foul.  The  Ranco 
cus  formed  no  exception  to  the  rule,  and  on  she  travelled, 
having  a  road  before  her  that  it  would  require  months  ere 
the  end  of  it  could  be  found.  It  is  not  our  intention  to 
dwell  on  the  details  of  this  long  voyage,  for  two  reasons. 
One  is  the  fact  that  most  voyages  to  the  southern  extremity 
of  the  American  continent  are  marked  by  the- same  inci 
dents  ;  and  the  other  is,  that  we  have  much  other  matter 
to  relate,  that  must  be  given  with  great  attention  to  mi- 
nutiaB,  and  which  we  think  will  have  much  more  interest 
with  the  reader. 

Captain  Crutchely  touched  at  Rio  for  supplies,  as  is 


34  THE  CRATER; 

customary ;  and,  after  passing  a  week  in  that  most  delight* 
ful  of  all  havens,  went  his  way.  The  passage  round  the 
Horn  was  remarkable  neither  way.  It  could  not  be  called 
a  very  boisterous  one,  neither  was  the  weather  unusually 
mild.  Ships  do  double  this  cape,  occasionally,  under  their 
top-gallant-sails,  and  we  have  heard  of  one  vessel  that  did 
not  furl  her  royals  for  several  days,  while  off  that  formida 
ble  head-land ;  but  these  cases  form  the  exception  and  not 
the  rule.  The  Rancocus  was  under  close-reefed  topsails 
for  the  better  part  of  a  fortnight,  in  beating  to  the  south 
ward  and  westward,  it  blowing  very  fresh  the  whole  time ; 
and  she  might  have  been  twice  as  long  struggling  with  the 
south-westerly  gales,  but  for  the  fortunate  circumstance  of 
the  winds  veering  so  far  to  the  southward  as  to  permit  her 
to  lay  her  course,  when  she  made  a  great  run  to  the  west 
ward.  When  the  wind  again  hauled,  as  haul  it  was  almost 
certain  to  do,  Captain  Crutchely  believed  himself  in  a  me 
ridian  that  would  admit  of  his  running  with  an  easy  bow 
line,  on  the  larboard  tack.  No  one  but  a  sailor  can  un 
derstand  the  effect  of  checking  the  weather-braces,  if  it  be 
only  for  a  few  feet,  and  of  getting  a  weather-leach  to  stand 
without  '  swigging  out'  on  its  bowline.  It  has  much  the 
same  influence  on  the  progress  of  a  ship,  that  an  eloquent 
speech  has  on  the  practice  of  an  advocate,  a  great  cure  or 
a  skilful  operation  on  that  of  a  medical  man,  or  a  lucky 
hit  in  trade  on  the  fortunes  of  the  young  merchant.  Away 
all  go  alike,  if  not  absolutely  with  flowing  sheets,  easily, 
swiftly,  and  with  less  of  labour  than  was  their  wont.  Thus 
did  it  now  prove  with  the  good  ship  Rancocus.  Instead 
of  struggling  hard  with  the  seas  to  get  three  knots  ahead, 
she  now  made  her  six,  and  kept  all,  or  nearly  all,  she 
made.  When  she  saw  the  land  again,  it  was  found  there 
was  very  little  to  spare,  but  that  little  sufficed.  The  vessel 
passed  to  windward  of  everything,  and  went  on  her  way 
rejoicing,  like  any  other  that  had  been  successful  in  a  hard 
and  severe  struggle.  A  fortnight  later,  the  ship  touched 
at  Valparaiso. 

The  voyage  of  the  Rancocus  may  now  be  said  to  have 
commenced  in  earnest.  Hitherto  she  had  done  little  but 
make  her  way  across  the  endless  waste  of  waters;  but 
now  she  had  the  real  business  before  her  to  execute.  A 
considerable  amount  of  freight,  which  had  been  brought 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  35 

on  account  of  the  Spanish  government,  was  discharged, 
and  the  vessel  filled  up  her  water.  Certain  supplies  of  food 
hat  was  deemed  useful  in  cases  of  scurvy,  were  obtained, 
and  after  a  delay  of  less  than  a  fortnight,  the  ship  once 
more  put  to  sea. 

In  the  year  1796  the  Pacific  Ocean  was  by  no  means  as 
familiar  to  navigators  as  it  is  to-day.  Cooke  had  made  his 
celebrated  voyages  less  than  twenty  years  before,  and  the 
accounts  of  them  were  then  before  the  world ;  but  even 
Cooke  left  a  great  deal  to  be  ascertained,  more  especially 
in  the  way  of  details.  The  first  inventor,  or  discoverer  of 
anything,  usually  gains  a  great  name,  though  it  is  those 
who  come  after  him  that  turn  his  labours  to  account.  Did 
we  know  no  more  of  America  to-day  than  was  known  to 
Columbus,  our  knowledge  would  be  very  limited,  and  the 
benefits  of  his  vast  enterprise  still  in  their  in/ancy. 

Compared  with  its  extent,  perhaps,  and  keeping  in  view 
its  ordinary  weather,  the  Pacific  can  hardly  be  considered 
a  dangerous  sea ;  but  he  who  will  cast  his  eyes  over  its 
chart,  will  at  once  ascertain  how  much  more  numerous  are 
its  groups,  islands,  rocks,  shoals  and  reefs,  than  those  of 
the  Atlantic.  Still,  the  mariners  unhesitatingly  steered  out 
into  its  vast  waters,  and  none  with  less  reluctance  and 
fewer  doubts  than  those  of  America. 

For  nearly  two  months  did  Captain  Crutchely,  after 
quitting  Valparaiso,  hold  his  way  into  the  depths  of  that 
mighty  sea,  in  search  of  the  islands  he  had  been  directed 
to  find.  Sandal-wood  was  his  aim,  a  branch  of  commerce, 
by  the  way,  which  ought  never  to  be  pursued  by  any  Chris 
tian  man,  or  Christian  nation,  if  what  we  hear  of  its  uses 
in  China  be  true.  There,  it  is  said  to  be  burned  as  incense 
before  idols,  and  no  higher  offence  can  be  committed  by 
any  human  being  than  to  be  principal,  or  accessary,  in  any 
manner  or  way,  to  the  substitution  of  any  created  thing  for 
the  ever-living  God.  In  after-life  Mark  Woolston  often 
thought  of  this,  when  reflection  succeeded  to  action,  and 
when  he  came  to  muse  on  the  causes  which  may  have  led 
to  his  being  the  subject  of  the  wonderful  events  that  oc 
curred  in  connection  with  his  own  fortunes.  We  have 
now  reached  a  part  of  our  narrative,  however,  when  it  be 
comes  necessary  to  go  into  details,  which  we  shall  defer  to 
the  commencement  of  a  new  chapter. 


36  THE  CRATER; 


CHAPTER  III. 

"  God  of  the  dark  and  heavy  deep ! 

The  waves  lie  sleeping  on  the  sands, 
Till  the  fierce  trumpet  of  the  storm 

Hath  summon'd  up  their  thundering  bands  j 
Then  the  white  sails  are  dashed  like  foam, 

Or  hurry  trembling  o'er  the  seas, 
Till  calmed  by  thee,  the  sinking  gale 
Serenely  breathes,  Depart  in  peace." 

PEABODT. 

THE  day  that  preceded  the  night  of  which  we  are  about 
to  speak,  was  misty,  with  the  wind  fresh  at  east-south 
east.  The  Rancocus  was  running  off,  south-west,  and  con 
sequently  was  going  with  the  wind  free.  Captain  Crutch- 
ely  had  one  failing,  and  it  was  a  very  bad  one  for  a  ship 
master  ;  he  wouldTlrink  rather  too  much  grog,  at  his  dinner. 
At  all  other  times  he  might  have  been  called  a  sober  man ; 
but,  at  dinner,  he  would  gulp  down  three  or  four  glasses 
of  rum  and  water.  In  that  day  rum  was  much  used  in 
America,  far  more  than  brandy;  and  every  dinner-table, 
that  had  the  smallest  pretension  to  be  above  that  of  the 
mere  labouring  man,  had  at  least  a  bottle  of  one  of  these 
liquors  on  it.  Wine  was  not  commonly  seen  at  the  cabin- 
table  ;  or,  if  seen,  it  was  in  those  vessels  that  had  recently 
been  in  the  vine-growing  countries,  and  on  special  occa 
sions.  Captain  Crutchely  was  fond  of  the  pleasures  of  the 
table  in  another  sense.  His  eating  was  on  a  level  with  his 
drinking;  and  for  pigs,  and  poultry,  and  vegetables  that 
would  keep  at  sea,  his  ship  was  always  a  little  remark 
able. 

On  the  day  in  question,  it  happened  to  be  the  birthday 
of  Mrs.  Crutchely,  and  the  captain  had  drunk  even  a  little 
more  than  common.  Now,  when  a  man  is  in  the  habit  of 
drinking  rather  more  than  is  good  for  him,  an  addition  of 
a  little  more  than  common  is  very  apt  to  upset  him.  Such, 
in  sober  truth,  was  the  case  with  the  commander  of  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  37 

Rancocus,  when  he  left  the  dinner-table,  at  the  time  to 
which  there  is  particular  allusion.  Mark,  himself,  was 
perfectly  sober.  The  taste  of  rum  was  unpleasant  to  him, 
nor  did  his  young  blood  and  buoyant  spirits  crave  its  effects. 
If  he  touched  it  at  all,  it  was  in  very  small  quantities,  and 
greatly  diluted  with  water.  He  saw  the  present  condition 
of  his  superior,  therefore,  with  regret ;  and  this  so  much 
the  more,  from  the  circumstance  that  an  unpleasant  report 
was  prevailing  in  the  ship,  that  white  water  had  been  seen 
ahead,  during  a  clear  moment,  by  a  man  who  had  just 
come  from  aloft.  This  report  the  mate  repeated  to  the 
captain,  accompanying  it  with  a  suggestion  that  it  might 
be  well  to  shorten  sail,  round-to,  and  sound.  But  Captain 
Crutchely  treated  the  report  with  no  respect,  swearing 
that  the  men  were  always  fancying  they  were  going  ashore 
on  coral,  and  that  the  voyage  would  last  for  ever,  did  he 
comply  with  all  their  conceits  of  this  nature.  Unfortu 
nately,  the  second-mate  was  an  old  sea-dog,  who  owed  his 
present  inferior  condition  to  his  being  a  great  deal  addicted 
to  the  practice  in  which  his  captain  indulged  only  a  little, 
and  he  had  been  sharing  largely  in  the  hospitality  of  the 
cabin  that  afternoon,  it  being  his  watch  below.  This  man 
supported  the  captain  in  his  contempt  for  the  rumours  and 
notions  of  the  crew,  and  between  them  Mark  found  him 
self  silenced. 

Our  young  officer  felt  very  uneasy  at  the  account  of  the 
sailor  who  had  reported  white  water  ahead,  for  he  was  one 
of  the  best  men  in  the  ship,  and  altogether  unlikely  to  say 
that  which  was  not  true.  It  being  now  six  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  and  the  second-mate  having  taken  charge  of  the 
watch,  Mark  went  up  into  the  fore-top-gallant  cross-trees 
himself,  in  order  to  get  the  best  look  ahead  that  he  could 
before  the  night  set  in.  It  wanted  but  half  an  hour,  or  so, 
of  sunset,  when  the  young  man  took  his  station  in  the 
cross-trees,  the  royal  not  being  set.  At  first,  he  could 
discern  nothing  ahead,  at  a  distance  greater  than  a  mile, 
on  account  of  the  mist;  but,  just  as  the  sun  went  below 
the  waters  it  lighted  up  to  the  westward,  and  Mark  then 
plainly  saw  what  he  was  perfectly  satisfied  must  be  break 
ers,  extending  for  several  miles  directly  across  the  vessel's 
track ! 


38  THE   CRATER; 

Such  a  discovery  required  decision,  and  the  young  man 
shouted  out — 

"  Breakers  ahead !" 

This  cry,  coming  from  his  first  officer,  startled  even 
Captain  Crutchely,  who  was  recovering  a  little  from  the 
effect  of  his  potations,  though  it  was  still  treated  with  con 
tempt  by  the  second-mate,  who  had  never  forgiven  one  as 
young  as  Mark,  for  getting  a  berth  that  he  fancied  due  to 
his  own  greater  age  and  experience.  He  laughed  openly 
at  this  second  report  of  breakers,  at  a  point  in  the  ocean 
where  the  chart  laid  down  a  clear  sea;  but  the  captain 
knew  that  the  charts  could  only  tell  him  what  was  known 
at  the  time  they  were  made,  and  he  felt  disposed  to  treat 
his  first  officer,  young  as  he  was,  with  more  respect  than 
the  second-mate.  All  hands  were  called  in  consequence, 
and  sail  was  shortened.  Mark  came  down  to  assist  in  this 
duty,  while  Captain  Crutchely  himself  went  aloft  to  look 
out  for  the  breakers.  They  passed  each  other  in  the  top, 
the  latter  desiring  his  mate  to  bring  the  ship  by  the  wind, 
on  the  larboard  tack,  or  with  her  head  to  the  southward, 
as  soon  as  he  had  the  sail  sufficiently  reduced  to  do  so  with 
safety. 

For  a  few  minutes  after  he  reached  the  deck,  Mark  was 
fully  employed  in  executing  his  orders.  Sail  was  shortened 
with  great  rapidity,  the  men  working  with  zeal  and  alarm, 
for  they  believed  their  messmate  when  the  captain  had  not. 
Although  the  vessel  was  under  top-mast  studding-sails  when 
the  command  to  take  in  the  canvas  was  given,  it  was  not 
long  before  Mark  had  her  under  her  three  topsails,  and 
these  with  two  reefs  in  them,  and  the  ship  on  an  easy 
bowline,  with  her  head  to  the  southward.  When  all  this 
was  done  the  young  man  felt  a  good  deal  of  relief,  for  the 
danger  he  had  seen  was  ahead,  and  this  change  of  course 
brought  it  nearly  abeam.  It  is  true,  the  breakers  were 
still  to  leeward,  and  insomuch  most  dangerously  situated 
but  the  wind  did  not  blow  strong  enough  to  prevent  the 
ehip  from  weathering  them,  provided  time  was  taken  by 
the  forelock.  The  Rancocus  was  a  good,  weatherly  ship, 
aor  was  there  sufficient  sea  on  to  make  it  at  all  difficult 
for  her  to  claw  off  a  lee  shore.  Desperate  indeed  is  the 
situation  of  the  vessel  that  has  rocks  or  sands  under  her 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  39 

lee,  with  the  gale  blowing  in  her  teeth,  and  heavy  seas 
sending  her  bodily,  and  surely,  however  slowly,  on  tlits 
very  breakers  she  is  struggling  to  avoid !  Captain  Crutch- 
ely  had  not  been  aloft  five  minutes  before  he  hailed  the 
deck,  and  ordered  Mark  to  send  Bob  Betts  up  to  the  cross- 
trees.  Bob  had  the  reputation  of  being  the  brightest  look 
out  in  the  vessel,  and  was  usually  employed  when  land 
was  about  to  be  approached,  or  a  sail  was  expected  to  be 
made.  He  went  up  the  fore-rigging  like  a  squirrel,  and 
was  soon  at  the  captain's  side,  both  looking  anxiously  to 
leeward.  A  few  minutes  after  the  ship  had  hauled  by  the 
wind,  both  came  down,  stopping  in  the  top,  however,  to 
take  one  more  look  to  leeward. 

The  second-mate  stood  waiting  the  further  descent  of 
the  captain,  with  a  sort  of  leering  look  of  contempt  on  his 
hard,  well-dyed  features,  which  seemed  to  anticipate  that 
it  would  soon  be  known  that  Mark's  white  water  had  lost 
its  colour,  and  become  blue  water  once  more.  But  Cap 
tain  Crutchely  did  not  go  as  far  as  this,  when  he  got  down. 
He  admitted  that  he  had  seen  nothing  that  he  could  very 
decidedly  say  was  breakers,  but  that,  once  or  twice,  when 
it  lighted  up  a  little,  there  had  been  a  gleaming  along  the 
western  horizon  which  a  good  deal  puzzled  him.  It  might 
be  white  water,  or  it  might  be  only  the  last  rays  of  the 
setting  sun  tipping  the  combs  of  the  regular  seas.  Bob 
Betts,  too,  was  as  much  at  fault  as  his  captain,  and  a  sar 
castic  remark  or  two  of  Hillson,  the  second-mate,  were 
fast  bringing  Mark's  breakers  into  discredit. 

"  Jest  look  at  the  chart,  Captain  Crutchely,"  put  in 
Hillson — "  a  regular  Tower  Hill  chart  as  ever  was  made, 
and  you  '11  see  there  can  be  no  white  water  hereabouts. 
If  a  man  is  to  shorten  sail  and  haul  his  wind,  at  every  dead 
whale  he  falls  in  with,  in  these  seas,  his  owners  will  have 
the  balance  on  the  wrong  side  of  the  book  at  the  end  of 
the  v'y'ge !" 

This  told  hard  against  Mark,  and  considerably  in  Hill- 
son's  favour. 

"And  could  you  see  nothing  of  breakers  ahead,  Bob?" 
demanded  Mark,  with  an  emphasis  on  the  ( you'  which 
pretty  plainly  implied  that  the  young  man  was  not  so  much 
surprised  that  the  captain  had  not  seen  them. 


40-  THE   CRATER; 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,  Mr.  Woolston,"  answered  Bob,  hitch 
ing  up  bis  trowsers,  "  and  I'd  a  pretty  good  look  ahead, 
too." 

This  made  still  more  against  Mark,  and  Captain  Crutch- 
ely  sent  for  the  chart.  Over  this  map  he  and  the  second- 
mate  pondered  with  a  sort  of  muzzy  sagacity,  when  they 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  a  clear  sea  must  prevail  around 
them,  in  all  directions,  for  a  distance  exceeding  a  thousand 
miles.  A  great  deal  is  determined  in  any  case  of  a  di 
lemma,  when  it  is  decided  that  this  or  that  fact  must  be  so. 
Captain  Crutchely  would  not  have  arrived  at  this  positive 
conclusion  so  easily,  had  not  his  reasoning  powers  been  so 
much  stimulated  by  his  repeated  draughts  of  rum  and 
water,  that  afternoon ;  all  taken,  as  he  said  and  believed, 
not  so  much  out  of  love  for  the  beverage  itself,  as  out  of 
love  for  Mrs.  John  Crutchely.  Nevertheless,  our  captain 
was  accustomed  to  take  care  of  a  ship,  and  he  was  not  yet 
in  a  condition  to  forget  all  his  duties,  in  circumstances  so 
critical.  As  Mark  solemnly  and  steadily  repeated  his  own 
belief  that  there  were  breakers  ahead,  he  so  far  yielded  to 
the  opinions  of  his  youthful  chief-mate  as  to  order  the  deep- 
sea  up,  and  to  prepare  to  sound. 

This  operation  of  casting  the  deep-sea  lead  is  not  done 
in  a  moment,  but,  on  board  a  merchant  vessel,  usually 
occupies  from  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  twenty  minutes. 
The  ship  must  first  be  hove-to,  and  her  way  ought  to  be 
as  near  lost  as  possible  before  the  cast  is  made.  Then  the 
getting  along  of  the  line,  the  stationing  of  the  men,  and 
the  sounding  and  hauling  in  again,  occupy  a  good  many 
minutes.  By  the  time  it  was  all  over,  on  this  occasion,  it 
was  getting  to  be  night.  The  misty,  drizzling  weather 
threatened  to  make  the  darkness  intense,  and  Mark  felt 
more  and  more  impressed  with  the  danger  in  which  the 
ship  was  placed. 

The  cast  of  the  lead  produced  no  other  result  than  the 
certainty  that  bottom  was  not  to  be  found  with  four  hun 
dred  fathoms  of  line  out.  No  one,  however,  not  even  the 
muzzy  Hillson,  attached  much  importance  to  this  fact,  in 
asmuch  as  it  was  known  that  the  coral  reefs  often  rise  like 
perpendicular  walls,  in  the  ocean,  having  no  bottom  to  be 
found  within  a  cable's-length  of  them.  Then  Mark  did 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  41 

not  believe  the  ship  to  be  within  three  leagues  of  the 
breakers  he  had  seen,  for  they  had  seemed,  both  to  him 
and  to  the  seaman  who  had  first  reported  them,  to  be 
several  leagues  distant.  One  on  an  elevation  like  that  of 
the  top-gallant  cross-trees,  could  see  a  long  way,  and  the 
white  water  had  appeared  to  Mark  to  be  on  the  very  verge 
of  the  western  horizon,  even  as  seen  from  his  lofty  look 
out. 

After  a  further  consultation  with  his  officers,  during 
which  Hillson  had  not  spared  his  hits  at  his  less  experi 
enced  superior,  Captain  Crutchely  came  to  a  decision, 
which  might  be  termed  semi-prudent.  There  is  nothing 
that  a  seaman  more  dislikes  than  to  be  suspected  of  extra- 
nervousness  on  the  subject  of  doubtful  dangers  of  this  sort. 
Seen  and  acknowledged,  he  has  no  scruples  about  doing 
his  best  to  avoid  them ;  but  so  long  as  there  is  an  uncer 
tainty  connected  with  their  existence  at  all,  that  miserable 
feeling  of  vanity  which  renders  us  all  so  desirous  to  be 
more  than  nature  ever  intended  us  for,  inclines  most  men 
to  appear  indifferent  even  while  they  dread.  The  wisest 
thing  Captain  Crutchely  could  have  done,  placed  in  the 
circumstances  in  which  he  now  found  himself,  would  have 
been  to  stand  off  and  on,  under  easy  canvas,  until  the  re 
turn  of  light,  when  he  might  have  gone  ahead  on  his  course 
with  some  confidence,  and  a  great  deal  more  of  safety. 
But  there  would  have  been  an  air  of  concession  to  the 
power  of  an  unknown  danger  that  conflicted  with  his  pride, 
in  such  a  course,  arid  the  old  and  well-tried  ship-master 
did  not  like  to  give  the  '  uncertain'  this  advantage  over 
him.  He  decided  therefore  to  stand  on,  with  his  topsails 
reefed,  keeping  bright  look-outs  ahead,  and  having  his 
courses  in  the  brails,  ready  for  getting  the  tacks  down  to 
claw  off  to  windward,  should  it  prove  to  be  necessary. 
With  this  plan  Mark  was  compelled  to  comply,  there  being 
no  appeal  from  the  decrees  of  the  autocrat  of  the  quarter 
deck. 

As  soon  as  the  decision  of  Captain  Crutchely  was  made, 
the  helm  was  put  up,  and  the  ship  kept  off  to  her  course 
It  was  true,  that  under  double-reefed  topsails,  and  jib, 
which  was  all  the  canvas  set,  there  was  not  half  the  danger 
there  would  have  been  under  their  former  sail ;  and,  when 


42  THE   CRATER; 

Mark  took  charge  of  the  watch,  as  he  did  soon  after,  or 
eight  o'clock,  he  was  in  hopes,  by  means  of  vigilance,  still 
to  escape  the  danger.  The  darkness,  which  was  getting 
to  be  very  intense,  was  now  the  greatest  and  most  imme 
diate  source  of  his  apprehensions.  Could  he  only  get  a 
glimpse  of  the  sea  a  cable's-length  ahead,  he  would  have 
felt  vast  relief;  but  even  that  small  favour  was  denied  him. 
By  the  time  the  captain  and  second-mate  had  turned  in, 
which  each  did  after  going  below  and  taking  a  stiff  glass 
of  rum  and  water  in  his  turn,  it  was  so  dark  our  young 
mate  could  not  discern  the  combing  of  the  waves  a  hundred 
yards  from  the  ship,  in  any  direction.  This  obscurity  was 
owing  to  the  drizzle  that  rilled  the  atmosphere,  as  well  as 
to  the  clouds  that  covered  the  canopy  above  that  lone  and 
wandering  ship. 

As  for  Mark,  he  took  his  station  between  the  knight- 
heads,  where  he  remained  most  of  the  watch,  nearly  strain 
ing  the  eyes  out  of  his  head,  in  the  effort  to  penetrate  the 
gloom,  and  listening  acutely  to  ascertain  if  he  might  not 
catch  some  warning  roar  of  the  breakers,  that  he  felt  so 
intimately  persuaded  must  be  getting  nearer  and  nearer  at 
each  instant.  As  midnight  approached,  came  the  thought 
of  Hillson's  taking  his  place,  drowsy  and  thick-headed  as 
he  knew  he  must  be  at  that  hour.  At  length  Mark  actu 
ally  fancied  he  heard  the  dreaded  sounds;  the  warning, 
however,  was  not  ahead,  but  well  on  his  starboard  beam. 
This  he  thought  an  ample  justification  for  departing  from 
his  instructions,  and  he  instantly  issued  an  order  to  put 
the  helm  hard  a-starboard,  so  as  to  bring  the  vessel  up  to 
the  wind,  on  the  contrary  tack.  Unfortunately,  as  the 
result  proved,  it  now  became  his  imperative  duty  to  report 
to  Captain  Crutchely  what  he  had  done.  For  a  minute 
or  two  the  young  man  thought  of  keeping  silence,  to  stand 
on  his  present  course,  to  omit  calling  the  second-mate,  and 
to  say  nothing  about  what  he  had  done,  keeping  the  deck 
himself  until  light  should  return.  But  reflection  induced 
him  to  shrink  from  the  execution  of  this  plan,  which  would 
have  involved  him  in  a  serious  misunderstanding  with  both 
his  brother  officers,  who  could  not  fail  to  hear  all  that  had 
occurred  in  the  night,  and  who  must  certainly  know,  each 
ID  his  respective  sphere,  that  they  themselves  had  been 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  43 

slighted.  With  a  slow  step,  therefore,  and  a  heavy  heart, 
Mark  went  into  the  cabin  to  make  his  report,  and  to  give 
the  second-mate  the  customary  call. 

It  was  not  an  easy  matter  to  awaken  either  of  those, 
who  slept  under  the  influence  of  potations  as  deep  as  the 
night-caps  taken  by  Captain  Crutchely  and  Mr.  Hillsou. 
The  latter,  in  particular,  was  like  a  man  in  a  state  of  le 
thargy,  and  Mark  had  half  a  mind  to  leave  him,  and  make 
his  condition  an  excuse  for  not  having  persisted  in  the 
call.  But  he  succeeded  in  arousing  the  captain,  who  soon 
found  the  means  to  bring  the  second-mate  to  a  state  of 
semi-consciousness. 

"  Well,  sir,"  cried  the  captain,  as  soon  as  fairly  awake 
himself,  "what  now?" 

"  I  think  I  heard  breakers  abeam,  sir,  and  I  have  hauled 
up  to  the  southward." 

A  grunt  succeeded,  which  Mark  scarce  knew  how  to 
interpret.  It  might  mean  dissatisfaction, 'or  it  might  mean 
surprise.  As  the  captain,  however,  was  thoroughly  awake, 
and  was  making  his  preparations  to  come  out  on  deck,  he 
thought  that  he  had  done  all  that  duty  required,  and  he 
returned  to  his  own  post.  The  after-part  of  the  ship  was 
now  the  best  situation  for  watching,  and  Mark  went  up  on 
the  poop,  in  order  to  see  and  hear  the  better.  No  lower 
sail  being  in  the  way,  he  could  look  ahead  almost  as  well 
from  that  position  as  if  he  were  forward ;  and  as  for  hear 
ing,  it  was  much  the  best  place  of  the  two,  in  consequence 
of  there  being  no  wash  of  the  sea  directly  beneath  him,  as 
was  the  case  when  stationed  between  the  knight-heads. 
To  this  post  he  soon  summoned  Bob  Betts,  who  belonged 
to  his  watch,  and  with  whom  he  had  ever  kept  up  as  great 
an  intimacy  as  the  difference  in  their  stations  would  allow. 

"  Bob,  your  ears  are  almost  as  good  as  your  eyes,"  said 
Mark  ;  "  have  you  heard  nothing  of  breakers?" 

"  I  have,  Mr.  Woolston,  and  now  own  I  did  see  some 
thing  that  may  have  been  white  water,  this  arternoon,  while 
aloft ;  but  the  captain  and  second-mate  seemed  so  awarse 
to  believing  in  sich  a  thing,  out  here  in  the  open  Pacific, 
that  I  got  to  be  awarse,  too." 

"  It  was  a  great  fault  in  a  look-out  not  to  let  what  he 
bad  seen  be  known,"  said  Mark,  gravely. 


44  TIIECRATER; 

"  I  own  it,  sir ;  I  own  how  wrong  I  was,  and  have  been 
sorry  for  it  ever  since.  But  it 's  going  right  in  the  wind's 
eye,  Mr.  Woolston,  to  go  ag'in  captain  and  dickey !" 

"  But,  you  now  think  you  have  heard  breakers — where 
away  ?" 

"  Astarn  first ;  then  ahead;  and,  just  as  you  called  me 
up  on  the  poop,  sir,  I  fancied  they  sounded  off  here,  on  the 
weather  bow." 

"  Are  you  serious,  Bob?" 

"  As  I  ever  was  in  my  life,  Mr.  Mark.  This  oversight 
of  the  arternoon  has  made  me  somewhat  conscientious,  if 
I  earn  be  conscientious,  and  my  sight  and  hearing  are  now 
both  wide  awake.  It 's  my  opinion,  sir,  that  the  ship  is  in 
the  midst  of  breakers  at  this  instant,  and  that  we  may  g® 
on  'em  at  any  moment  !'^ 

"  The  devil  it  is !"  exclaimed  Captain  Crutchely,  who 
now  appeared  on  the  poop,  and  who  caught  the  last  part 
of  Bob  Betts's  speech.  "  Well,  for  my  part,  I  hear  nothing 
out  of  the  way,  and  I  will  swear  the  keenest-sighted  man 
on  earth  can  see  nothing." 

These  words  were  scarcely  out  of  the  captain's  mouth, 
and  had  been  backed  by  a  senseless,  mocking  laugh  from 
Hillson,  who  was  still  muzzy,  and  quite  as  much  asleep  as 
awake,  when  the  deep  and  near  roar  of  breakers  was  most 
unequivocally  heard.  It  came  from  to  windward,  too,  and 
abeam!  This  was  proof  that  the  ship  was  actually  among 
the  breakers  when  Mark  hauled  up,  and  that  she  was  now 
passing  a  danger  to  leeward,  that  she  must  have  previously 
gone  by,  in  running  down  on  her  course.  The  captain, 
without  waiting  to  consult  with  his  cool  and  clear-headed 
young  mate,  now  shouted  for  all  hands  to  be  called,  and 
to  *'  stand  by  to  ware  ship."  These  orders  came  out  so 
fast,  and  in  so  peremptory  a  manner,  that  remonstrance 
was  out  of  the  question,  and  Mark  set  himself  at  work  to 
obey  them,  in  good  earnest.  He  would  have  tacked  in 
preference  to  waring,  and  it  would  have  been  much  wiser 
to  do  so ;  but  it  was  clearly  expedient  to  get  the  ship  on 
the  other  tack,  and  he  lent  all  his  present  exertions  to  the 
attainment  of  that  object.  Waring  is  much  easier  done 
than  tacking,  certainly ;  when  it  does  not  blow  too  fresh, 
and  there  is  not  a  dangerous  sea  on,  no  nautical  manoeuvre 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  45 

can  be  more  readily  effected,  though  room  is  absolutely 
necessary  to  its  success.  This  room  was  now  wanting. 
Just  as  the  ship  had  got  dead  before  the  wind,  and  was 
flying  away  to  leeward,  short  as  was  the  sail  she  was  under, 
the  atmosphere  seemed  to  be  suddenly  filled  with  a  strange 
light,  the  sea  became  white  all  around  them,  and  a  roar 
of  tumbling  waters  arose,  that  resembled  the  sound  of  a 
small  cataract.  The  ship  was  evidently  in  the  midst  of 
breakers,  and  the  next  moment  she  struck ! 

The  intense  darkness  of  the  night  added  to  the  horrors 
of  that  awful  moment.  Nevertheless,  the  effect  was  to 
arouse  all  that  there  was  of  manliness  and  seamanship  in 
Captain  Crutchely,  who  from  that  instant  appeared  to  be 
himself  again.  His  orders  were  issued  coolly,  clearly  and 
promptly,  and  they  were  obeyed  as  experienced  mariners 
will  work  at  an  instant  like  that.  The  sails  were  all  clewed 
up,  and  the  heaviest  of  them  were  furled.  Hillson  was 
ordered  to  clear  away  an  anchor,  while  Mark  was  attend 
ing  to  the  canvas.  In  the  mean  time,  the  captain  watched 
the  movements  of  the  ship.  He  had  dropped  a  lead  along 
side,  and  by  that  he  ascertained  that  they  were  still  beating 
ahead.  The  thumps  were  not  very  hard,  and  the  white 
water  was  soon  left  astern,  none  having  washed  on  deck. 
All  this  was  so  much  proof  that  the  place  on  whieh  they 
had  struck  must  have  had  nearly  water  enough  to  float  the 
vessel,  a  fact  that  the  lead  itself  corroborated.  Fifteen 
feet  aft  was  all  the  Rancocus  wanted,  in  her  actual  trim, 
and  the  lead  showed  a  good  three  fathoms,  at  times.  It 
was  when  the  ship  settled  in  the  troughs  of  the  sea  that  she 
felt  the  bottom.  Satisfied  that  his  vessel  was  likely  to  beat 
over  the  present  difficulty,  Captain  Crutchely  now  gave 
all  his  attention  to  getting  her  anchored  as  near  the  reef 
and  to  leeward  of  it,  as  possible.  The  instant  she  went 
clear,  a  result  he  now  expected  every  moment,  he  was  de 
termined  to  drop  one  of  his  bower  anchors,  and  wait  for 
daylight,  before  he  took  any  further  steps  to  extricate  him 
self  from  the  danger  by  which  he  was  surrounded. 

On  the  forecastle,  the  work  went  on  badly,  and  thither 
Captain  Crutchely  proceeded.  The  second-mate  scarce 
knew  what  he  was  about,  and  the  captain  took  charge  of 
the  duty  himself.  At  the  same  time  he  issued  an  order  to 


46  THE     CRATER; 

Mark  to  get  up  tackles,  and  to  clear  away  the  launch,  pre* 
paratory  to  getting  that  boat  into  the  water.  Hillson  had 
bent  the  cable  wrong,  and  much  of  the  work  had  to  be 
done  over  again.  As  soon  as  men  get  excited,  as  is  apt 
to  be  the  case  when  they  find  serious  blunders  made  at 
critical  moments,  they  are  not  always  discreet.  The  pre 
cise  manner  in  which  Captain  Crutchely  met  with  the 
melancholy  fate  that  befel  him,  was  never  known.  It  is 
certain  that  he  jumped  down  on  the  anchor-stock,  the 
anchor  being  a  cock-bill,  and  that  he  ordered  Mr.  Hillson 
off  of  it.  While  thus  employed,  and  at  an  instant  when 
the  cable  was  pronounced  bent,  and  the  men  were  in  the 
act  of  getting  inboard,  the  ship  made  a  heavy  roll,  breakers 
again  appeared  all  around  her,  the  white  foam  rising  nearly 
to  the  level  of  her  rails.  The  captain  was  seen  no  more. 
There  is  little  doubt  that  he  was  washed  from  the  anchor 
stock,  and  carried  away  to  leeward,  in  the  midst  of  the 
darkness  of  that  midnight  hour. 

Mark  was  soon  apprised  of  the  change  that  had  occurred, 
and  of  the  heavy  responsibility  that  now  rested  on  his  young 
shoulders.  A  feeling  of  horror  and  of  regret  came  over 
him,  at  first;  but  understanding  the  necessity  of  self-com 
mand,  he  aroused  himself,  at  once,  to  his  duty,  and  gave 
his  orders  coolly  and  with  judgment.  The  first  step  was 
to  endeavour  to  save  the  captain.  The  jolly-boat  was  low 
ered,  and  six  men  got  in  it,  and  passed  ahead  of  the  ship, 
with  this  benevolent  design.  Mark  stood  on  the  bowsprit, 
and  saw  them  shoot  past  the  bows  of  the  vessel,  and  then, 
almost  immediately,  become  lost  to  view  in  the  gloomy  dark 
ness  of  the  terrible  scene.  The  men  never  re-appeared,  a 
common  and  an  unknown  fate  thus  sweeping  away  Captain 
Crutchely  and  six  of  his  best  men,  and  all,  as  it  might  be, 
in  a  single  instant  of  time! 

Notwithstanding  these  sudden  and  alarming  losses,  the 
work  went  on.  Hillson  seemed  suddenly  to  become  con 
scious  of  the  necessity  of  exertion,  and  by  giving  his  utmost 
attention  to  hoisting  out  the  launch,  that  boat  was  got 
safely  into  the  water.  By  this  time  the  ship  had  beaten 
so  far  over  the  reef,  as  scarcely  to  touch  at  all,  and  Mark 
had  everything  ready  for  letting  go  his  anchors,  the  instant 
he  had  reason  to  believe  she  was  in  water  deep  enough  to 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  47 

float  her.  The  thumps  grew  lighter  and  lighter,  and  the 
lead-line  showed  a  considerable  drift ;  so  much  so,  indeed, 
as  to  require  its  being  hauled  in  and  cast  anew  every  mi 
nute.  Under  all  the  circumstances,  Mark  expected  each 
instant,  to  find  himself  in  four  fathoms'  water,  and  he  in 
tended  to  let  go  the  anchor  the  moment  he  was  assured  of 
that  fact.  In  the  mean  time,  he  ordered  the  carpenter  to 
sound  the  pumps.  This  was  done,  and  the  ship  was  re* 
ported  with  only  the  customary  quantity  of  water  in  the 
well.  As  yet  her  bottom  was  not  injured,  materially  at 
least. 

While  Mark  stood  with  the  lead-line  in  his  hand,  anx 
iously  watching  the  drift  of  the  vessel  and  the  depth  of 
water,  Hillson  was  employed  in  placing  provisions  in  the 
launch.  There  was  a  small  amount  of  specie  in  the  cabin, 
and  this,  too,  was  transferred  to  the  launch ;  everything 
of  that  sort  being  done  without  Mark's  knowledge,  and  by 
the  second-mate's  orders.  The  former  was  on  the  forecastle, 
waiting  the  proper  moment  to  anchor ;  while  all  of  the 
after-part  of  the  ship  was  at  the  mercy  of  the  second-mate, 
and  a  gang  of  the  people,  whom  that  officer  had  gathered 
around  him. 

At  length  Mark  found,  to  his  great  delight,  that  there 
were  four  good  fathoms  of  water  under  the  ship's  bows, 
though  she  still  hung  abaft.  He  ascertained  this  fact  by 
means  of  Bob  Betts,  which  true-hearted  tar  stood  by  him, 
with  a  lantern,  by  swinging  which  low  enough,  the  marks 
were  seen  on  the  lead-line.  Foot  by  foot  the  ship  now 
surged  ahead,  the  seas  being  so  much  reduced  in  size  and 
power,  by  the  manner  in  which  they  had  been  broken  to 
windward,  as  not  to  lift  the  vessel  more  than  an  inch  or  two 
at  a  time.  After  waiting  patiently  a  quarter  of  an  hour, 
Mark  believed  that  the  proper  time  had  come,  and  he  gave 
the  order  to  '  let  run.'  The  seaman  stationed  at  the  stopper 
obeyed,  and  down  went  the  anchor.  It  happened,  oppor 
tunely  enough,  that  the  anchor  was  thus  dropped,  just  as 
the  keel  cleared  the  bottom,  and  the  cable  being  secured 
at  a  short  range,  after  forging  ahead  far  enough  to  tighten 
the  hitter,  the  vessel  tended.  In  swinging  to  her  anchor, 
a  roller  came  down  upon  her,  however ;  one  that  had  crossed 
the  reef  without  breaking,  and  broke  on  board  her.  Mark 


THE   CRATER; 

afterwards  believed  that  the  rush  and  weight  of  this  sea, 
which  did  no  serious  harm,  frightened  the  men  into  the 
launch,  where  Hillson  was  already  in  person,  and  that  the 
boat  either  struck  adrift  under  the  power  of  the  roller,  or 
that  the  >ainter  was  imorudently  cast  off  in  the  confusion 
of  the  moment.  He  had  got  in  as  far  as  the  windlass  him 
self,  when  the  sea  came  aboard ;  and,  as  soon  as  he  reco 
vered  his  sight  after  the  ducking  he  received,  he  caught  at 
dim  view  of  the  launch,  driving  off  to  leeward,  on  the  top 
of  a  wave.  Hailing  was  useless,  and  he  stood  gazing  at 
the  helpless  boat  until  it  became  lost,  like  everything  else 
that  was  a  hundred  yards  from  the  ship,  in  Vhe  gloom  of 
night.  Even  then  Mark  was  by  no  means  conscious  of 
the  extent  of  the  calamity  that  had  befallen  him.  It  was 
only  when  he  had  visited  cabin,  steerage  and  forecastle, 
and  called  the  crew  over  by  name,  that  he  reached  the 
grave  fact  that  there  was  no  one  left  on  board  the  Ranco- 
cus  but  Bob  Belts  and  himself! 

As  Mark  did  not  know  what  land  was  to  be  found  to 
leeward,  he  naturally  enough  hoped  and  expected  that  the 
people  in  both  boats  might  reach  the  shore,  and  be  reco 
vered  in  the  morning ;  but  he  had  little  expectation  of  ever 
seeing  Captain  Crutchely  again.  The  circumstances, 
however,  afforded  him  little  time  to  reflect  on  these  things, 
and  he  gave  his  whole  attention,  for  the  moment,  to  the 
preservation  of  the  ship.  Fortunately,  the  anchor  held, 
and,  as  the  wind,  which  had  never  blown  very  heavily, 
sensibly  began  to  lessen,  Mark  was  sanguine  in  the  belief 
it.  would  continue  to  hold.  Captain  Crutchely  had  taken 
the  precaution  to  have  the  cable  bitted  at  a  short  range 
with  a  view  to  keep  it,  as  much  as  possible,  off  the  bottom  ; 
coral  being  known  to  cut  the  hempen  cables  that  were  alto 
gether  in  use,  in  that  day,  almost  as  readily  as  axes.  In 
consequence  of  this  bit  of  foresight,  the  Rancocus  lay  at  a 
distance  of  less  than  forty  fathoms  from  her  anchor,  which 
Mark  knew  had  been  dropped  in  four  fathoms'  water.  He 
now  sounded  abreast  of  the  main-mast,  and  ascertained 
that  the  ship  itself  was  in  nine  fathoms.  This  was  cheer 
ing  intelligence,  and  when  Bob  Betts  heard  it,  he  gave  it 
as  his  opinion  that  all  might  yet  go  well  with  them,  could 
they  only  recover  the  six  men  who  had  gone  to  leeward  in 


OR,  VOLCAN'S  PEAK.  49 

the  jolly-boat.  The  launch  had  carried  off  nine  of  their 
crew,  which,  previously  to  this  night,  had  consisted  of 
nineteen,  all  told.  This  suggestion  relieved  Mark's  mind 
of  a  load  of  care,  and  he  lent  himself  to  the  measures  ne 
cessary  to  the  continued  safety  of  the  vessel,  with  renewed 
animation  and  vigour. 

The  pump- well  was  once  more  sounded,  and  found  to 
be  nearly  empty.  Owing  to  the  nature  of  the  bottom  on 
which  they  had  struck,  the  lightness  of  the  thumps,  or  the 
strength  of  the  ship  herself,  it  was  clear  that  the  vessel 
had  thus  far  escaped  without  any  material  injury.  For 
this  advantage  Mark  was  deeply  grateful,  and  could  he 
only  recover  four  or  five  of  the  people,  and  find  his  way 
out  into  open  water,  he  might  hope  to  live  again  to  see 
America,  and  to  be  re-united  to  his  youthful  and  charming 
bride. 

The  weather  continued  to  grow  more  and  more  mode 
rate,  and  some  time  before  the  day  returned  the  clouds 
broke  away,  the  drizzle  ceased,  and  a  permanent  change 
was  to  be  expected.  Mark  now  found  new  ground  for 
apprehensions,  even  in  these  favourable  circumstances. 
He  supposed  that  the  ship  must  feel  the  influence  of  the 
tides,  so  near  the  land,  and  was  afraid  she  might  tail  the 
other  way,  and  thus  be  brought  again  over  the  reef.  In 
order  to  obviate  this  difficulty,  he  and  Bob  set  to  work  to 
get  another  cable  bent,  and  another  anchor  clear  for  letting 
go.  As  all  our  readers  may  not  be  familiar  with  ships,  it 
may  be  well  to  say  that  vessels,  as  soon  as  they  quit  a  coast 
on  a  long  voyage,  unbend  their  cables  and  send  them  all 
below,  out  of  the  way,  while,  at  the  same  time,  they  stow 
their  anchors,  as  it  is  called ;  that  is  to  say,  get  them  from 
under  the  cat-heads,  from  which  they  are  usually  sus 
pended  when  ready  to  let  go,  and  where  they  are  necessa 
rily  altogether  on  the  outside  of  the  vessel,  to  positions 
more  inboard,  where  they  are  safer  from  the  force  of  the 
waves,  and  better  secured.  As  all  the  anchors  of  the  Ran- 
cocus  had  been  thus  stowed,  until  Captain  Crutchely  got 
the  one  that  was  down,  off  the  gunwale,  and  all  the  cables 
below,  Mark  and  Bob  had  labour  enough  before  them  to 
occupy  several  hours,  in  the  job  thus  undertaken. 
5 


50  THE     CRATES  J 


CHAPTER  IV. 

"Deep  in  the  wave  is  a  coral  grove, 
Where  the  purple  mullet  and  gold  fish  rove, 
Where  the  sea-flower  spreads  its  leaves  of  blue, 
That  never  are  wet  with  falling  dew, 
But  in  bright  and  changeful  beauty  shine, 
Far  down  in  the  green  and  grassy  brine." 

PEHCITAI,. 
t 

OUR  young  mate,  and  his  sole  assistant,  Bob  Betts,  had 
set  about  their  work  on  the  stream-cable  and  anchor,  the 
lightest  and  most  manageable  of  all  the  ground-tackle  in 
the  vessel.  Both  were  strong  and  active,  and  both  were 
expert  in  the  use  of  blocks,  purchases,  and  handspikes  ; 
but  the  day  was  seen  lighting  the  eastern  sky,  and  the  an 
chor  was  barely  off  the  gunwale,  and  ready  to  be  stoppered. 
In  the  meanwhile  the  ship  still  tended  in  the  right  direc 
tion,  the  wind  had  moderated  to  a  mere  royal-breeze,  and 
the  sea  had  so  far  gone  down  as  nearly  to  leave  the  vessel 
without  motion.  As  soon  as  perfectly  convinced  of  the 
existence  of  this  favourable  state  of  things,  and  of  its  being 
likely  to  last,  Mark  ceased  to  work,  in  order  to  wait  for 
day,  telling  Bob  to  discontinue  his  exertions  also.  It  was 
fully  time,  for  both  of  those  vigorous  and  strong-handed 
men  were  thoroughly  fatigued  with  the  toil  of  that  eventful 
morning. 

The  reader  may  easily  imagine  with  what  impatience 
our  two  mariners  waited  the  slow  return  of  light.  Each 
minute  seemed  an  hour,  and  it  appeared  to  them  as  if  the 
night  was  to  last  for  ever.  But  the  earth  performed  its 
usual  revolution,  and  by  degrees  sufficient  light  was  ob 
tained  to  enable  Mark  and  Bob  to  examine  the  state  of 
things  around  them.  In  order  to  do  this  the  better,  each 
went  into  a  top,  looking  abroad  from  those  elevations  on 
the  face  of  the  ocean,  the  different  points  of  the  reef,  and 
all  that  was  then  and  there  to  be  seen.  Mark  went  up 
forward,  while  Bob  ascended  into  the  main-top.  The  di 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  51 

tance  between  them  was  so  small,  that  there  was  no  diffi 
culty  in  conversing,  which  they  continued  to  do,  as  was 
natural  enough  to  men  in  their  situation. 

The  first  look  that  each  of  our  mariners  bestowed,  after 
he  was  in  his  top,  was  to  leeward,  which  being  to  the 
westward,  was  of  course  yet  in  the  darkest  point  of  the 
horizon.  They  expected  to  obtain  a  sight  of  at  least  one 
island,  and  that  quite  near  to  them,  if  not  of  a  group.  But 
no  land  appeared  !  It  is  true,  that  it  was  still  too  dark  to 
be  certain  of  a  fact  of  this  sort,  though  Mark  felt  quite 
assured  that  if  land  was  finally  seen,  it  must  be  of  no  great 
extent,  and  quite  low.  He  called  to  Bob,  to  ascertain  what 
lie  thought  of  appearances  to  leeward,  his  reputation  as  a 
look-out  being  so  great. 

"Wait  a  few  minutes,  sir,  till  we  get  a  bit  more  day," 
answered  his  companion.  "  There  is  a  look  on  the  water, 
about  a  league  off  here  on  the  larboard  quarter,  that  seems 
as  if  something  would  come  out  of  it.  But,  one  thing  can 
be  seen  plain  enough,  Mr.  Mark,  and  that's  the  breakers. 
There's  a  precious  line  on  'em,  and  that  too  one  within 
another,  as  makes  it  wonderful  how  we  ever  got  through 
Jem  as  well  as  we  did !" 

This  was  true  enough,  the  light  on  the  ocean  to  wind 
ward  being  now  sufficient  to  enable  the  men  to  see,  in  that 
direction,  to  a  considerable  distance.  It  was  that  solemn 
hour  in  the  morning  when  objects  first  grow  distinct,  ere 
they  are  touched  with  the  direct  rays  from  the  sun,  and 
when  everything  appears  as  if  coming  to  us  fresh  and  reno 
vated  from  the  hands  of  the  Creator.  The  sea  had  so  far 
gone  down  as  to  render  the  breakers  much  less  formi 
dable  to  the  eye,  than  when  it  was  blowing  more  heavily ; 
but  this  very  circumstance  made  it  impossible  to  mistake 
their  positions.  In  the  actual  state  of  the  ocean,  it  was 
certain  that  wherever  water  broke,  there  must  be  rocks  or 
shoals  beneath ;  whereas,  in  a  blow,  the  combing  of  an 
ordinary  sea  might  be  mistaken  for  the  white  water  of 
some  hidden  danger.  Many  of  the  rocks,  however,  lay  so 
low,  that  the  heavy,  sluggish  rollers  that  came  undulating 
along,  scarce  did  more  fhan  show  faint,  feathery  lines  of 
white,  to  indicate  the  character  of  the  places  across  which 
they  were  passing.  Such  was  now  the  case  with  the  reef 


52  THE   CRATER; 

over  which  the  ship  had  beaten,  the  position  of  which  could 
hardly  have  been  ascertained,  or  its  danger  discovered,  at 
the  distance  of  half  a  mile.  Others  again  were  of  a  very 
different  character,  the  water  still  tumbling  about  them  like 
so  many  little  cataracts.  This  variety  was  owing  to  the 
greater  depth  at  which  some  of  the  rocks  lay  than  others. 

As  to  the  number  of  the  reefs,  and  the  difficulty  in  get 
ting  through  them,  Bob  was  right  enough.  It  often  hap 
pens  that  there  is  an  inner  and  an  outer  reef  to  the  islands 
of  the  Pacific,  particularly  to  those  of  coral  formation  ;  but 
Mark  began  to  doubt  whether  there  was  any  coral  at  all 
in  the  place  where  the  Rancocus  lay,  in  consequence  of 
the  entire  want  of  regularity  in  the  position  of  these  very 
breakers.  They  were  visible  in  all  directions ;  not  in  con 
tinuous  lines,  but  in  detached  parts;  one  lying  within 
another,  as  Bob  had  expressed  it,  until  the  eye  could  not 
reach  their  outer  limits.  How  the  ship  had  got  so  com 
pletely  involved  within  their  dangerous  embraces,  without 
going  to  pieces  on  a  dozen  of  the  reefs,  was  to  him  matter 
of  wonder ;  though  it  sometimes  happens  at  sea,  that  dan 
gers  are  thus  safely  passed  in  darkness  and  fog,  that  no 
man  would  be  bold  enough  to  encounter  in  broad  daylight, 
and  with  a  full  consciousness  of  their  hazards.  Such  then 
had  been  the  sort  of  miracle  bv  which  the  Rancocus  had 
escaped ;  though  it  was  no  more  easy  to  see  how  she  was 
to  be  got  out  of  her  present  position,  than  it  was  to  see 
how  she  had  got  into  it.  Bob  was  the  first  to  make  a  re 
mark  on  this  particular  part  of  the  subject. 

"It  will  need  a  reg'lar  branch  here,  Mr.  Mark,  to  carry 
the  old  Rancocus  clear  of  all  them  breakers  to  sea  again," 
he  cried.  "  Our  Delaware  banks  is  just  so  many  fools  to 
'em,  sir  !" 

"  It  is  a  most  serious  position  for  a  vessel  to  be  in,  Bob," 
answered  Mark,  sighing — "  nor  do  I  see  how  we  are  ever 
to  get  clear  of  it,  even  should  we  get  back  men  enough  to 
handle  the  ship." 

"I'm  quite  of  your  mind,  sir,"  answered  Bob,  taking 
out  his  tobacco-box,  and  helping  himself  to  a  quid.  "  Nor 
would  I  be  at  all  surprised  should  there  turn  out  to  be  a 
bit  of  land  to  leeward,  if  you  and  I  was  to  Robinson  Crusoe 
it  for  the  rest  of  oui  days.  My  good  mother  was  always 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  53 

most  awarse  to  my  following  the  seas  on  account  of  that 
very  danger;  most  especially  from  a  fear  of  the  savages 
from  the  islands  round  about." 

"  We  will  look  for  our  boats,"  Mark  gravely  replied,  the 
image  of  Bridget,  just  at  that  instant,  appearing  before  his 
mind  with  a  painful  distinctness. 

Both  now  turned  their  eyes  again  to  leeward,  the  first 
direct  rays  of  the  sun  beginning  to  illumine  the  surface  of 
the  ocean  in  that  quarter.  Something  like  a  misty  cloud 
had  been  setded  on  the  water,  rather  less  than  a  league 
from  the  ship,  in  the  western  board,  and  had  hitherto  pre 
vented  a  close  examination  in  that  part  of  the  horizon. 
The  power  of  the  sun,  however,  almost  instantly  dispersed 
it,  and  then,  for  the  first  time,  Bob  fancied  he  did  discover 
something  like  land.  Mark,  however,  could  not  make  it 
out,  until  he  had  gone  up  into  the  cross-trees,  when  he, 
too,  got  a  glimpse  of  what,  under  all  the  circumstances, 
he  did  not  doubt  was  either  a  portion  of  the  reef  that  rose 
above  the  water,  or  was  what  might  be  termed  a  low, 
straggling  island.  Its  distance  from  the  ship,  they  esti 
mated  at  rather  more  than  two  leagues. 

Both  Mark  and  Bob  remained  aloft  near  an  hour  longer, 
or  until  they  had  got  the  best  possible  view  of  which  their 
position  would  allow,  of  everything  around  the  ship.  Bob 
went  down,  and  took  a  glass  up  to  his  officer,  Mark  sweep 
ing  the  whole  horizon  with  it,  in  the  anxious  wish  to  make 
out  something  cheering  in  connection  with  the  boats.  The 
drift  of  these  unfortunate  craft  must  have  been  towards  the 
land,  and  that  he  examined  with  the  utmost  care.  Aided 
by  the  glass,  and  his  elevation,  he  got  a  tolerable  view  of 
the  spot,  which  certainly  promised  as  little  in  the  ^ay  of 
supplies  as  any  other  bit  of  naked  reef  he  had  ev*i  seen. 
The  distance,  however,  was  so  great  as  to  prevent  uis  ob 
taining  any  certain  information  on  that  point.  One-  thing, 
however,  he  did  ascertain,  as  he  feared,  with  considerable 
accuracy.  After  passing  the  glass  along  the  whole  of  that 
naked  rock,  he  could  see  nothing  on  it  in  motion.  Of 
birds  there  were  a  good  many,  more  indeed  than  horn  the 
extent  of  the  visible  reef  he  might  have  expected  ;  but  no 
signs  of  man  could  be  discovered.  As  the  ocean,  in  all 
directions,  was  swept  by  the  glass,  and  this  single  fragment 


54  THE  CRATER; 

of  a  reef,  which  was  less  than  a  mile  in  length,  was  the 
only  thing  that  even  resembled  land,  the  melancholy  con 
viction  began  to  force  itself  on  Mark  and  Bob,  that  all 
their  shipmates  had  perished !  They  might  have  perished 
in  one  of  several  ways ;  as  the  naked  reef  did  not  lie  pre 
cisely  to  leeward  of  the  ship,  the  boats  may  have  driven 
by  it,  in  the  deep  darkness  of  the  past  night,  and  gone  far 
away  out  of  sight  of  the  spot  where  they  had  left  the  vessel, 
long  ere  the  return  of  day.  There  was  just  the  possibility 
that  the  spars  of  the  ship  might  be  seen  by  the  wanderers, 
if  they  were  still  living,  and  the  faint  hope  of  their  regain 
ing  the  vessel,  in  the  course  of  the  day,  by  means  of  their 
oars.  It  was,  however,  more  probable  that  the  boats  had 
capsized  in  some  of  the  numerous  fragments  of  breakers, 
that  were  visible  even  in  the  present  calm  condition  of  the 
ocean,  and  that  all  in  them  had  been  drowned.  The  best 
swimmer  must  have  hopelessly  perished,  in  such  a  situa 
tion,  and  in  such  a  night,  unless  carried  by  a  providential 
interference  to  the  naked  rock  to  leeward.  That  no  one 
was  living  on  that  reef,  the  £]ass  pretty  plainly  proved. 

Mark  and  Bob  Betts  descended  to  the  deck,  after  pass 
ing  a  long  time  aloft  making  their  observations.  Both 
were  pretty  well  assured  that  their  situation  was  almost 
desperate,  though  each  was  too  resolute,  and  too  thoroughly 
imbued  with  the  spirit  of  a  seaman,  to  give  up  while  there 
was  the  smallest  shadow  of  hope.  As  it  was  now  getting 
past  the  usual  breakfast  hour,  some  cold  meat  was  got  out. 
and,  for  the  first  time  since  Mark  had  been  transferred  to 
the  cabin,  they  sat  down  on  the  windlass  and  ate  the  meal 
together.  A  little,  however,  satisfied  men  in  their  situa 
tion;  Bob  Betts  fairly  owning  that  he  had  no  appetite, 
though  so  notorious  at  the  ship's  beef  and  a  biscuit,  as  to 
be  often  the  subject  of  his  messmates'  jokes.  That  morn 
ing  even  he  could  eat  but  little,  though  both  felt  it  to  be  a 
duty  they  owed  to  themselves  to  take  enough  to  sustain 
nature.  It  was  while  these  two  forlorn  and  desolate  mari 
ners  sat  there  on  the  windlass,  picking,  as  it  might  be, 
morsel  by  morsel,  that  they  first  entered  into  a  full  and 
frank  communication  with  each  other,  touching  the  reali 
ties  of  their  present  situation.  After  a  good  deal  had 
passed  between  them,  Mark  suddenly  asked — 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  55 

"  Do  you  think  it  possible,  Bob,  for  us  two  to  take  care 
of  the  ship,  should  we  even  manage  to  get  her  into  deep 
water  again  ?" 

"  Well,  that  is  not  so  soon  answered,  Mr.  Woolston," 
returned  Bob.  "  We  're  both  on  us  stout,  and  healthy,  and 
of  good  courage,  Mr.  Mark;  but  'twould  be  a  desperate 
long  way  for  two  hands  to  carry  a  wessel  of  four  hundred 
tons,  to  take  the  old  'Cocus  from  this  here  anchorage,  aK 
the  way  to  the  coast  of  America ;  ana  short  of  the  coast 
there's  no  ra'al  hope  for  us.  Hows^r,  sir,  that  is  a  sub 
ject  that  need  give  us  no  consarn." 

"  I  do  not  see  that,  Bob;  we  shall  have  to  do  it,  unless 
we  fall  in  with  something  at  sea,  could  we  only  once  get 
the  vesseji  out  from  among  these  reefs." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir — could  we  get  her  out  from  among  these 
reefs,  indeed !  There 's  the  rub,  Mr.  Woolston ;  but  I 
fear  't  will  never  be  '  rub  and  go.'  " 

"  You  think,  then,  we  are  too  fairly  in  for  it,  ever  to  get 
the  ship  clear  t" 

"  Such  is  just  my  notion,  Mr.  Woolston,  on  that  subject, 
and  I've  no  wish  to  keep  it  a  secret.  In  my  judgment, 
was  poor  Captain  Crutchely  alive  and  back  at  his  post,  and 
all  hands  just  as  they  was  this  time  twenty-four  hours  since, 
and  the  ship  where  she  is  now,  that  here  she  would  have 
to  stay.  Nothing  short  of  kedging  can  ever  take  the  wes 
sel  clear  of  the  reefs  to  windward  on  us,  and  man-of-war 
kedging  could  hardly  do  it,  then." 

"  I  am  sorry  to  hear  you  say  this,"  answered  Mark, 
gloomily,  "  though  I  feared  as  much  myself." 

"  Men  is  men,  sir,  and  you  can  get  no  more  out  on  'em 
than  is  in  'em.  I  looked  well  at  these  reefs,  sir,  when 
aloft,  and  they  're  what  I  call  as  hopeless  affairs  as  ever  I 
laid  eyes  on.  If  they  lay  in  any  sort  of  way,  a  body  might 
have  some  little  chance  of  getting  through  'em,  but  they 
don't  lay,  no  how.  'T  would  "be  '  luff'  and  *  keep  her 
away'  every  half  minute  or  so,  should  we  attempt  to  beat 
up  among  'em ;  and  who  is  there  aboard  here  to  brace  up, 
and  haul  aft,  and  ease  off,  and  to  swing  yards  sich  as 
our'n?" 

"  I  was  not  altogether  without  the  hope,  Bob,  of  getting 
the  ship  into  clear  water ;  though  I  have  thought  it  would 


66  i  HE  CRATER; 

be  done  with  difficulty.  I  am  still  of  opinion  we  had  bettef 
try  it,  for  the  alternative  is  a  very  serious  matter." 

"  I  don't  exactly  understand  what  you  mean  by  attorney- 
tives,  Mr.  Mark;  though  it's  little  harm,  or  little  good 
that  any  attorney  can  do  the  old  'Cocus,  now !  But,  as 
for  getting  this  craft  through  them  reefs,  to  windward,  and 
into  clear  water,  it  surpasses  the  power  of  man.  Did  you 
just  notice  the  tide-ripples,  Mr.  Mark,  when  you  was  up 
in  the  cross-trees  ?" 

"I  saw  them,  Bob,  and  am  fully  aware  of  the  difficulty 
of  running  as  large  a  vessel  as  this  among  them,  even  with 
a  full  crew.  But  what  will  become  of  us,  unless  we  get 
the  ship  into  open  water  ?" 

"  Sure  enough,  sir.  I  see  no  other  hope  for  us,  Mr* 
Mark,  but  to  Robinson  Crusoe  it  awhile,  until  our  times 
come ;  or,  till  the  Lord,  in  his  marcy,  shall  see  fit  to  have 
us  picked  up." 

"  Robinson  Crusoe  it !"  repeated  Mark,  smiling  at  the 
quaintness  of  Bob's  expression,  which  the  well-meaning 
fellow  uttered  in  all  simplicity,  and  in  perfect  good  faith — 
"  where  are  we  to  find  even  an  uninhabited  island,  OB 
which  to  dwell  after  the  mode  of  Robinson  Crusoe?" 

"  There's  a  bit  of  a  reef  to  leeward,  where  I  dare  say  a 
man  might  pick  up  a  living,  arter  a  fashion,"  answered 
Bob,  coolly;  "  then,  here  is  the  ship." 

"  And  how  long  would  a  hempen  cable  hold  the  ship  in 
a  place  like  this,  where  every  time  the  vessel  lifts  to  a  sea, 
the  clench  is  chafing  on  a  rock  ?  No,  no,  Bob — the  ship 
cannot  long  remain  where  she  is,  depend  on  that.  We 
must  try  and  pass  down  to  leeward,  if  we  cannot  beat  the 
ship  through  the  dangers  to  windward." 

"  Harkee,  Mr.  Mark;  I  thought  this  matter  over  in  my 
mind,  while  we  was  aloft,  and  this  is  my  idee  as  to  what 
is  best  to  be  done,  for  a  start.  There's  the  dingui  on  the 
poop,  in  as  good  order  as*  ever  a  boat  was.  She  will  easily 
carry  two  on  us,  and,  on  a  pinch,  she  might  carry  half  a 
dozen.  Now,  my  notion  is  to  get  the  dingui  into  the 
water,  to  put  a  breaker  and  some  grub  in  her,  and  to  pull 
down  to  that  bit  of  a  reef,  and  have  a  survey  of  it.  I  'Ii 
take  the  sculls  going  down,  and  you  can  keep  heaving  the 
Jead,  by  way  of  finding  out  if  there  be  sich  a  thing  as>  ^ 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  57 

channel  in  that  direction.  If  the  ship  is  ever  to  be  moved 
by  us  two,  it  must  be  by  going  to  leeward,  and  not  by  at 
tempting  to  turn  up  ag'in  wind  and  tide  among  them  'ere 
rocks,  out  here  to  the  eastward.  No,  sir ;  let  us  take  the 
dingui,  and  surwey  the  reef,  and  look  for  our  shipmates; 
a'ter  which  we  can  best  tell  what  to  undertake,  with  some 
little  hope  of  succeeding.  The  weather  seems  settled,  and 
the  sooner  we  are  off  the  better." 

This  proposal  struck  Mark's  young  mind  as  plausible, 
as  well  as  discreet.  To  recover  even  a  single  man  would 
be  a  great  advantage,  and  he  had  lingering  hopes  that  some 
of  the  people  might  yet  be  found  on  the  reef.  Then  Bob's 
idea  about  getting  the  ship  through  the  shoal  water,  by 
passing  to  leeward,  in  preference  to  making  the  attempt 
against  the  wind,  was  a  sound  one ;  and,  on  a  little  reflec 
tion,  he  was  well  enough  disposed  to  acquiesce  in  it.  Ac 
cordingly,  when  they  quitted  the  windlass,  they  both  set 
about  putting  this  project  in  execution. 

The  dingui  was  no  great  matter  of  a  boat,  and  they  had 
not  much  difficulty  in  getting  it  into  the  water.  First  by 
slinging,  it  was  swayed  high  enough  to  clear  the  rail,  when 
Bob  bore  it  over  the  side,  and  Mark  lowered  away.  It 
was  found  to  be  tight,  Captain  Crutchely  having  kept  it 
half  full  of  water  ever  since  they  got  into  the  Pacific,  and 
in  other  respects  it  was  in  good  order.  It  was  even  pro 
vided  with  a  little  sail,  which  did  very  well  before  the 
wind.  While  Bob  saw  to  provisioning  the  boat,  and  filling 
its  breakers  with  fresh  water,  Mark  attended  to  another 
piece  of  duty  that  he  conceived  to  be  of  the  last  import 
ance.  The  Rancocus  carried  several  guns,  an  armament 
prepared  to  repel  the  savages  of  the  sandal-wood  islands, 
and  these  guns  were  all  mounted  and  in  their  places. 
There  were  two  old-fashioned  sixes,  and  eight  twelve-pound 
carronades.  The  first  made  smart  reports  when  properly 
loaded.  Our  young  mate  now  got  the  keys  of  the  maga 
zine,  opened  it,  and  brought  forth  three  cartridges,  with 
which  he  loaded  three  of  the  guns.  These  guns  he  fired, 
with  short  intervals  between  them,  in  hopes  that  the  reports 
would  be  carried  to  the  ears  of  some  of  the  missing  people, 
and  encourage  them  to  make  every  effort  to  return.  The 
roar  of  artillery  sounded  strangely  enough  in  the  midst  of 


58  THE   CRATER; 

that  vast  solitude ;  and  Bob  Betts,  who  had  often  been  in 
action,  declared  that  he  was  much  affected  by  it.  As  no 
immediate  result  was  expected  from  the  firing  of  these 
guns,  Mark  had  no  sooner  discharged  them,  than  he  joined 
Betts,  who  by  this  time  had  everything  ready,  and  prepared 
to  quit  the  ship.  Before  he  did  this,  however,  he  made  an 
anxious  and  careful  survey  of  the  weather  it  being  all-im 
portant  to  be  certain  no  change  in  this  respect  was  likely 
to  occur  in  his  absence.  All  the  omens  were  favourable, 
and  Bob  reporting  for  the  third  time  that  everything  was 
ready,  the  young  man  went  over  the  side,  and  descended, 
with  a  reluctance  he  could  not  conceal,  into  the  boat. 
Certainly,  it  was  no  trifling  matter  for  men  in  the  situation 
of  our  two  mariners,  to  leave  their  vessel  all  alone,  to  be 
absent  for  a  large  portion  of  the  day.  It  was  to  be  done, 
however  ;  though  it  was  done  reluctantly,  and  not  without 
many  misgivings,  in  spite  of  the  favourable  signs  in  the 
atmosphere. 

When  Mark  had  taken  his  seat  in  the  dingui,  Bob  let  go 
his  hold  of  the  ship,  and  set  the  sail.  The  breeze  was 
light,  and  fair  to  go,  though  it  was  by  no  means  so  certain 
how  it  would  serve  them  on  the  return.  Previously  to 
quitting  the  ship,  Mark  had  taken  a  good  look  at  the 
breakers  to  leeward,  in  order  to  have  some  general  notion 
of  the  course  best  to  steer,  and  he  commenced  his  little 
voyage,  but  entirely  without  a  plan  for  his  own  govern 
ment.  The  breakers  were  quite  as  numerous  to  leeward 
as  to  windward,  but  the  fact  of  there  being  so  many  of 
them  made  smooth  water  between  them.  A  boat,  or  a  ship, 
that  was  once  fairly  a  league  or  so  within  the  broken  lines 
of  rocks,  was  like  a  vessel  embayed,  the  rollers  of  the  open 
ocean  expending  their  force  on  the  outer  reefs,  and  coming 
in  much  reduced  in  size  and  power.  Still  the  uneasy 
ocean,  even  in  its  state  of  rest,  is  formidable  at  the  points 
where  its  waters  meet  with  rocks,  or  sands,  and  the  break 
ers  that  did  exist,  even  as  much  embayed  as  was  the  dingui, 
were  serious  matters  for  so  small  a  boat  to  encounter.  It 
was  necessary,  consequently,  to  steer  clear  of  them,  lest 
they  should  capsize,  or  fill,  this,  the  only  craft  of  the  sort 
that  now  belonged  to  the  vessel,  the  loss  of  which  would 
be  a  most  serious  matter  indeed. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  59 

The  dingui  slided  away  from  the  ship  with  a  very  easy 
movement.  There  was  just  about  as  much  wind  as  so 
small  a  craft  needed,  and  Bob  soon  began  to  sound,  Mark 
preferring  to  steer.  It  was,  however,  by  no  means  easy  to 
sound  in  so  low  a  boat,  while  in  such  swift  motion ;  and 
Bob  was  compelled  to  give  it  up.  As  they  should  be 
obliged  to  return  with  the  oars,  Mark  observed  that  then 
he  would  feel  his  way  back  to  the  ship.  Nevertheless,  the 
few  casts  of  the  lead  that  did  succeed,  satisfied  our  mari 
ners  that  there  was  much  more  than  water  enough  for  the 
Rancocus,  between  the  reefs.  On  them,  doubtless  it  would 
turn  out  to  be  different. 

Mark  met  with  more  difficulty  than  he  had  anticipated 
in  keeping  the  dingui  out  of  the  breakers.  So  very  smooth 
was  the  sort  of  bay  he  was  in — a  bay  by  means  of  the  reefs 
to  windward,  though  no  rock  in  that  direction  rose  above 
the  surface  of  the  sea — so  very  smooth,  then,  was  the  sort 
of  bay  he  was  in,  that  the  water  did  not  break,  in  many 
places,  except  at  long  intervals;  and  then  only  when  a 
roller  heavier  than  common  found  its  way  in  from  the 
outer  ocean.  As  a  consequence,  the  breakers  that  did 
suddenly  show  themselves  from  a  cause  like  this,  were  the 
heaviest  of  all,  and  the  little  dingui  would  have  fared  badly 
had  it  been  caught  on  a  reef,  at  the  precise  moment  when 
such  a  sea  tumbled  over  in  foam.  This  accident  was  very 
near  occurring  once  or  twice,  but  it  was  escaped,  more  by 
providential  interference  than  by  any  care  or  skill  in  the 
adventurers. 

It  is  very  easy  to  imagine  the  intense  interest  with  which 
our  two  mariners  drew  near  to  the  visible  reef.  Their 
observations  from  the  cross-trees  of  the  ship,  had  told  them 
this  was  all  the  land  anywhere  very  near  them,  and  if  they 
did  not  find  their  lost  shipmates  here,  they  ought  not  to 
expect  to  find  them  at  all.  Then  this  reef,  or  island,  was 
of  vast  importance  in  other  points  of  view.  It  might  be 
come  their  future  home;  perhaps  for  years,  possibly  for 
life.  The  appearances  of  the  sunken  reefs,  over  and  among 
which  he  had  just  passed,  had  greatly  shaken  Mark's  hope 
of  ever  getting  the  ship  from  among  them,  and  he  even 
doubted  the  possibility  of  bringing  her  down,  before  the 
wind,  to  the  place  where  he  was  then  going.  All  these 


60  THE  CRATER; 

considerations,  which  began  to  press  more  and  more  pain 
fully  on  his  mind,  each  foot  as  he  advanced,  served  to  in- 
crease  the  intensity  of  the  interest  with  which  he  noted 
every  appearance  on,  or  about,  the  reef,  or  island,  that  he 
was  now  approaching.  Bob  had  less  feeling  on  the  sub 
ject.  He  had  less  imagination,  and  foresaw  consequences 
and  effects  less  vividly  than  his  officer,  and  was  more  ac 
customed  to  the  vicissitudes  of  a  seaman's  life.  Then  he 
had  left  no  virgin  bride  at  home,  to  look  for  his  return ; 
and  had  moreover  made  up  his  mind  that  it  was  the  will 
of  Providence  that  he  and  Mark  were  to  '  Robinson  Crusoe 
it'  awhile  on  *  that  bit  of  a  reef.'  Whether  they  should 
ever  be  rescued  from  so  desolate  a  place,  was  a  point  on 
which  he  had  not  yet  begun  to  ponder. 

The  appearances  were  anything  but  encouraging,  as  the 
dingui  drew  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  naked  part  of  the  reef. 
The  opinions  formed  of  this  place,  by  the  examination  made 
from  the  cross-trees,  turned  out  to  be  tolerably  accurate, 
in  several  particulars.  It  was  just  about  a  mile  in  length, 
while  its  breadth  varied  from  half  a  mile  to  less  than  an 
eighth  of  a  mile.  On  its  shores,  the  rock  along  most  of 
the  reef  rose  but  a  very  few  feet  above  the  surface  of  the 
water,  though  at  its  eastern,  or  the  weather  extremity,  it 
might  have  been  of  more  than  twice  the  usual  height ;  its 
length  lay  nearly  east  and  west.  In  the  centre  of  this 
island,  however,  there  was  a  singular  formation  of  the  rock, 
which  appeared  to  rise  to  an  elevation  of  something  like 
sixty  or  eighty  feet,  making  a  sort  of  a  regular  circular 
mound  of  that  height,  which  occupied  no  small  part  of  the 
widest  portion  of  the  island.  Nothing  like  tree,  shrub,  or 
grass,  was  visible,  as  the  boat  drew  near  enough  to  render 
euch  things  apparent.  Of  aquatic  birds  there  were  a  good 
many :  though  even  they  did  not  appear  in  the  numbers 
that  are  sometimes  seen  in  the  vicinity  of  uninhabited 
islands.  About  certain  large  naked  rocks,  at  no  great  dis 
tance  however  from  the  principal  reef,  they  were  hovering 
in  thousands. 

At  length  the  little  dingui  glided  in  quite  near  to  the 
island.  Mark  was  at*  first  surprised  to  find  so  little  surf 
beating  against  even  its  weather  side,  but  this  was  ac 
counted  for  by  the  great  number  of  the  reefs  that  lay  for 


OK,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  61 

miles  without  it;  and,  particularly,  by  the  fact  that  one 
line  of  rock  stretched  directly  across  this  weather  end, 
distant  from  it  only  two  cables'  lengths,  forming  a  pretty 
little  sheet  of  perfectly  smooth  water  between  it  and  the 
island.  Of  course,  to  do  this,  the  line  of  reef  just  men 
tioned  must  come  very  near  the  surface ;  as  in  fact  was  the 
case,  the  rock  rising  so  high  as  to  be  two  or  three  feet  out 
of  water  on  the  ebb,  though  usually  submerged  on  the  flood. 
The  boat  was  obliged  to  pass  round  one  end  of  this  last- 
named  reef,  where  there  was  deep  water,  and  then  to  haul 
its  wind  a  little  in  order  to  reach  the  shore. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  describe  the  sensations  with 
which  Mark  first  landed.  In  approaching  the  place,  both 
he  and  Bob  had  strained  their  eyes  in  the  hope  of  seeing 
some  proof  that  their  shipmates  had  been  there ;  but  no 
discovery  rewarded  their  search.  Nothing  was  seen,  on 
or  about  the  island,  to  furnish  the  smallest  evidence  that 
either  of  the  boats  had  touched  it.  Mark  found  that  he 
was  treading  on  naked  rock  when  he  had  landed,  though 
the  surface  was  tolerably  smooth.  The  rock  itself  was  of 
a  sort  to  which  he  was  unaccustomed  ;  and  he  began  to  sus 
pect,  what  in  truth  turned  out  on  further  investigation  to 
be  the  fact,  that  instead  of  being  on  a  reef  of  coral,  he  was 
on  one  of  purely  volcanic  origin.  The  utter  nakedness  of 
the  rock  both  surprised  and  grieved  him.  On  the  reefs,  in 
every  direction,  considerable  quantities  of  sea-weed  had 
lodged,  temporarily  at  least;  but  none  of  it  appeared  to 
have  found  its  way  to  this  particular  place.  Nakedness 
and  dreariness  were  the  two  words  which  best  described 
the  island  ;  the  only  interruption  to  its  solitude  and  deso 
lation  being  occasioned  by  the  birds,  which  now  came 
screaming  and  flying  above  the  heads  of  the  intruders, 
showing  both  by  their  boldness  and  their  cries,  that  they 
were  totally  unacquainted  with  men. 

The  mound,  in  the  centre  of  the  reef,  was  an  object  too 
conspicuous  to  escape  attention,  and  our  adventurers  ap 
proached  it  at  once,  with  the  expectation  of  getting  a  better 
look-out  from  its  summit,  than  that  they  had  on  the  lower 
level  of  the  surface  of  the  ordinary  reef.  Thither  then 
they  proceeded,  accompanied  by  a  large  flight  of  the  birds. 
Neither  Mark  nor  Bob,  however,  had  neglected  to  turn 
6 


THECRATER; 

his  eyes  towards  the  now  distant  ship,  which  was  appa 
rently  riding  at  its  anchor,  in  exactly  the  condition  in 
which  it  had  been  left,  half  an  hour  before.  In  that  quar 
ter  all  seemed  right,  and  Mark  led  the  way  to  the  mount, 
with  active  and  eager  steps. 

On  reaching  the  foot  of  this  singular  elevation,  our  ad 
venturers  found  it  would  not  be  so  easy  a  matter  as  they 
had  fancied,  to  ascend  it.  Unlike  the  rest  of  the  reef 
which  they  had  yet  seen,  it  appeared  to  be  composed  of  a 
crumbling  rock,  and  this  so  smooth  and  perpendicular  as  to 
render  it  extremely  difficult  to  get  up.  A  place  was  found 
at  length,  however,  and  by  lending  each  other  a  hand, 
Mark  and  Bob  finally  got  on  the  summit.  Here  a  surprise 
was  ready  for  them,  that  drew  an  exclamation  from  each, 
the  instant  the  sight  broke  upon  him.  Instead  of  finding 
an  elevated  bit  of  table-rock,  as  had  been  expected,  a  cir 
cular  cavity  existed  within,  that  Mark  at  once  recognised 
to  be  the  extinct  crater  of  a  volcano !  After  the  first  asto 
nishment  was  over,  Mark  made  a  close  examination  of 
the  place. 

The  mound,  or  barrier  of  lava  and  scoria?  that  composed 
the  outer  wall  of  this  crater,  was  almost  mathematically 
circular.  Its  inner  precipice  was  in  most  places  absolutely 
perpendicular,  though  overhanging  in  a  few ;  there  being 
but  two  or  three  spots  where  an  active  man  could  descend 
in  safety.  The  area  within  might  contain  a  hundred  acres, 
while  the  wall  preserved  a  very  even  height  of  about  sixty 
feet,  falling  a  little  below  this  at  the  leeward  side,  where 
there  existed  one  narrow  hole,  or  passage,  on  a  level  with 
the  bottom  of  the  crater ;  a  sort  of  gateway,  by  which  to 
enter  and  quit  the  cavity.  This  passage  had  no  doubt 
been  formed  by  the  exit  of  lava,  which  centuries  ago  had 
doubtless  broken  through  at  this  point,  and  contributed  to 
form  the  visible  reef  beyond.  The  height  of  this  hole  was 
some  twenty  feet,  having  an  arch  above  it,  and  its  width 
may  have  been  thirty.  When  Mark  got  to  it,  which  he 
did  by  descending  the  wall  of  the  crater,  not  without  risk 
to  his  neck,  he  found  the  surface  of  the  crater  very  even 
and  unbroken,  with  the  exception  of  its  having  a  slight 
descent  from  its  eastern  to  its  western  side ;  or  from  the 
side  opposite  to  the  outlet,  or  gateway,  to  the  gateway 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  63 

itself.  This  inclination  Mark  fancied  was  owing  to  the 
circumstance  that  the  water  of  the  ocean  had  formerly  en 
tered  at  the  hole,  in  uncommonly  high  tides  and  tempests, 
and  washed  the  ashes  which  had  once  formed  the  bottom 
of  the  crater,  towards  the  remote  parts  of  the  plain.  These 
ashes  had  been  converted  by  time  into  a  soft,  or  friable 
rock,  composing  a  stone  that  is  called  tufa.  If  there  had 
ever  been  a  cone  in  the  crater,  as  was  probably  the  case, 
it  had  totally  disappeared  under  the  action  of  time  and  the 
wear  of  the  seasons.  Rock,  however,  the  bed  of  the  crater 
could  scarcely  be  yet  considered,  though  it  had  a  crust 
which  bore  the  weight  of  a  man  very  readily,  in  nearly 
every  part  of  it.  Once  or  twice  Mark  broke  through,  as 
one  would  fall  through  rotten  ice,  when  he  found  his  shoes 
covered  with  a  light  dust  that  much  resembled  ashes.  In 
other  places  he  broke  this  crust  on  purpose,  always  finding 
beneath  it  a  considerable  depth  of  ashes,  mingled  with 
some  shells,  and  a  few  small  stones. 

That  the  water  sometimes  flowed  into  this  crater  wa3 
evident  by  a  considerable  deposit  of  salt,  which  marked 
the  limits  of  the  latest  of  these  floods.  This  salt  had  pro 
bably  prevented  vegetation.  The  water,  however,  never 
could  have  entered  from  the  sea,  had  not  the  lava  which 
originally  made  the  outlet  left  a  sort  of  channel  that  was 
lower  than  the  surface  of  the  outer  rocks.  It  might  be 
nearer  to  the  real  character  of  the  phenomenon  were  we 
to  say,  that  the  lava  which  had  broken  through  the  barrier 
at  this  point,  and  tumbled  iato  the  sea,  had  not  quite  filled 
the  channel  which  it  rather  found  than  formed,  when  it 
ceased  to  flow.  Cooling  in  that  form,  an  irregular  crevice 
was  left,  through  which  the  element  no  doubt  still  occa 
sionally  entered,  when  the  adjacent  ocean  got  a  sufficient 
elevation.  Mark  observed  that,  from  some  cause  or  other, 
the  birds  avoided  the  crater.  It  really  seemed  to  him  that 
their  instincts  warned  them  of  the  dangers  that  had  once 
environed  the  place,  and  that,  to  use  the  language  of  sail 
ors,  "  they  gave  it  a  wide  berth,"  in  consequence.  What 
ever  may  have  been  the  cause,  such  was  the  fact;  few  even 
flying  over  it,  though  they  were  to  be  seen  in  hundreds,  in 
the  air  all  round  it. 


64  TUB  CRATER; 


CHAPTER  V. 

"The  king's  son  have  I  landed  by  himself; 
Whom  I  left  cooling  of  the  air  with  sighs 
In  an  odd  angle  of  the  isle,  and  sitting, 
His  arms  in  this  sad  knot." 

Tempest. 

HAVING  completed  this  first  examination  of  the  crater, 
Mark  and  Bob  next  picked  their  way  again  to  the  summit 
of  its  wall,  and  took  their  seats  directly  over  the  arch. 
Here  they  enjoyed  as  good  a  look-out  as  the  little  island 
aiforded,  not  only  of  its  own  surface,  but  of  the  surround 
ing  ocean.  Mark  now  began  to  comprehend  the  character 
of  the  singular  geological  formation,  into  the  midst  of 
which  the  Rancocus  had  been  led,  as  it  might  almost  be 
by  the  hand  of  Providence  itself.  He  was  at  that  moment 
seated  on  the  topmost  pinnacle  of  a  submarine  mountain 
of  volcanic  origin  —  submarine  as  to  all  its  elevations, 
heights  and  spaces,  with  the  exception  of  the  crater  where 
he  had  just  taken  his  stand,  and  the  little  bit  of  visible  and 
venerable  lava,  by  which  it  was  surrounded.  It  is  true 
that  this  lava  rose  very  near  the  surface  of  the  ocean,  in 
fifty  places  that  he  could  see  at  no  great  distance,  forming 
the  numberless  breakers  that  characterized  the  place ;  but, 
with  the  exception  of  Mark's  Reef,  as  Bob  named  the 
principal  island  on  the  spot,  two  or  three  detached  islets 
within  a  cable's-length  of  it,  and  a  few  little  more  remote, 
the  particular  haunts  of  birds,  no  other  land  was  visible, 
far  or  near. 

As  Mark  sat  there,  on  that  rock  of  concrete  ashes,  he 
speculated  on  the  probable  extent  of  the  shoals  and  reefs 
by  which  he  was  surrounded.  Judging  by  what  he  then 
saw,  and  recalling  the  particulars  of  the  examination  made 
from  the  cross-trees  of  the  ship,  he  supposed  that  the  dan 
gers  and  difficulties  of  the  navigation  must  extend,  in  an 
east  and  west  direction,  at  least  twelve  marine  leagues; 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  65 

while,  in  a  north  and  south,  the  distance  seemed  to  be  a 
little,  and  a  very  little  less.  There  was  necessarily  a  good 
deal  of  conjecture  in  this  estimate  of  the  extent  of  the  vol 
canic  mountain  which  composed  these  extensive  shoals; 
but,  from  what  he  saw,  from  the  distance  the  ship  was 
known  to  have  run  amid  the  dangers  before  she  brought 
up,  her  present  anchorage,  the  position  of  the  island,  and 
all  the  other  materials  before  him  to  make  his  calculation 
on,  Mark  believed  himself  rather  to  have  lessened  than  to 
have  exaggerated  the  extent  of  these  shoals.  Had  the 
throes  of  the  earth,  which  produced  this  submerged  rock, 
been  a  little  more  powerful,  a  beautiful  and  fertile  island, 
of  very  respectable  dimensions,  would  probably  have  been 
formed  in  its  place. 

From  the  time  of  reaching  the  reef,  which  is  now  to 
bear  his  name  in  all  future  time,  our  young  seaman  had 
begun  to  admit  the  bitter  possibility  of  being  compelled  to 
pass  the  remainder  of  his  days  on  it.  How  long  he  and 
his  companion  could  find  the  means  of  subsistence  in  a 
place  so  barren,  was  merely  matter  of  conjecture ;  but  so 
long  as  Providence  should  furnish  these  means,  was  it 
highly  probable  that  solitary  and  little-favoured  spot  was 
to  be  their  home.  It  is  unnecessary  to  state  with  what 
bitter  regrets  the  young  bridegroom  admitted  this  painful 
idea;  but  Mark  was  too  manly  and  resolute  to  abandon 
himself  to  despair,  even  at  such  a  moment.  He  kept  his 
sorrows  pent  up  in  the  repository  of  his  own  bosom,  and 
endeavoured  to  imitate  the  calm  exterior  of  his  companion. 
As  tor  Bob,  he  w;is  a  good  deal  of  a  philosopher  by  nature ; 
and,  having  made  up  his  mind  that  they  were  doomed  t« 
'  Robinson  Crusoe  it,'  for  a  few  years  at  least,  he  was  al 
ready  turning  over  in  his  thoughts  the  means  of  doing  so  tc 
the  best  advantage.  Under  such  circumstances,  and  witk 
such  feelings,  it  is  not  at  all  surprising  that  their  presen* 
situation  and  their  future  prospects  soon  became  the  sub 
ject  of  discourse,  between  these  two  solitary  seamen. 

"  We  are  fairly  in  for  it,  Mr.  Mark,"  said  Bob,  "  an* 
differ  from  Robinson  only  in  the  fact  that  there  are  two  of 
us;  whereas  he  was  obliged  to  set  up  for  himself,  arid  by 
himself,  until  he  fell  in  with  Friday  !" 

"  1  wish  I  could  say  that  was  the  only  difference  in  oai 
6* 


66  THE  CRATER; 

conditions,  Betts,  but  it  is  very  far  from  being  so.  In  the 
first  place  he  had  an  island,  while  we  have  little  more  than 
a  reef;  he  had  soil,  while  we  have  naked  rock  ;  he  had 
fresh  water,  and  we  have  none;  he  had  trees,  while  we 
have  not  even  a  spear  of  grass.  All  these  circumstances 
make  out  a  case  most  desperately  against  us." 

"  You  speak  truth,  sir  ;  yet  is  there  light  ahead.  We 
have  a  ship,  sound  and  tight  as  the  day  she  sailed ;  while 
Robinson  lost  his  craft  under  his  feet.  As  long  as  there 
is  a  plank  afloat,  a  true  salt  never  gives  up." 

"  Ay,  Bob,  I  feel  that,  as  strongly  as  you  can  yourself; 
nor  do  I  mean  to  give  up,  so  long  as  there  is  reason  to 
think  God  has  not  entirely  deserted  us.  But  that  ship  is 
of  no  use,  in  the  way  of  returning  to  our  friends  and  home ; 
or,  of  no  use  as  a  ship.  The  power  of  man  could  scarcely 
extricate  her  from  the  reefs  around  her." 

"  It 's  a  bloody  bad  berth,"  said  Bob,  squirting  the  saliva 
of  his  tobacco  half-way  down  the  wall  of  the  crater,  "  that 
I  must  allow.  Howsomever,  the  ship  will  be  of  use  in  a 
great  many  ways,  Mr.  Mark,  if  we  can  keep  her  afloat, 
even  where  she  is.  The  water  that 's  in  her  will  last  us 
two  a  twelvemonth,  if  we  are  a  little  particular  about  it; 
and  when  the  rainy  season  sets  in,  as  the  rainy  season  will 
be  sure  to  do  in  this  latitude,  we  can  fill  up  for  a  fresh 
start.  Then  the  ship  will  be  a  house  for  us  to  live  in,  and 
a  capital  good  house,  too.  You  can  live  aft,  sir,  and  I  '11 
take  my  swing  in  the  forecastle,  just  as  if  nothing  had 
happened." 

"  No,  no,  Bob ;  there  is  an  end  of  all  such  distinctions 
now:  Misery,  like  the  grave,  brings  all  upon  a  level. 
You  and  I  commenced  as  messmates,  and  we  are  likely  to 
end  as  messmates.  There  is  a  use  to  which  the  ship  may 
be  put,  however,  that  you  have  not  mentioned,  and  to 
which  we  must  look  forward  as  our  best  hope  for  this  world. 
She  may  be  broken  up  by  us,  and  we  may  succeed  in 
building  a  craft  large  enough  to  navigate  these  mild  seas, 
and  yet  small  enough  to  be  taken  through,  or  over  the 
reefs.  In  that  way,  favoured  by  Divine  Providence,  we 
may  live  to  see  our  friends  again." 

"  Courage,  Mr.  Mark,  courage,  sir.  I  know  it  must  be 
hard  on  the  feelin's  of  a  married  man,  like  yourself,  that 


on,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  61 

has  left  a  parfect  pictur'  behind  him,  to  believe  he  is  never 
to  return  to  his  home  again.  But  I  don't  believe  that  such 
is  to  be  our  fate.  I  never  heard  of  such  an  end  to  a  Crusoe 
party.  Even  Robinson,  himself,  got  off  at  last,  and  had  a 
desperate  hard  journey  of  it,  after  he  hauled  his  land-tacks 
aboard.  I  like  that  idee  of  the  new  craft  'specially  well, 
and  will  lend  a  hand  to  help  you  through  with  it  with  all 
my  heart.  I  'm  not  much  of  a  carpenter,  it  'a  true ;  nor  do 
I  suppose  you  are  anything  wonderful  with  the  broad-axe 
and  adze;  but  two  willing  and  stout  men,  who  has  got 
their  lives  to  save,  can  turn  their  hands  to  almost  anything. 
For  my  part,  sir,  since  I  was  to  be  wrecked  and  to  Robin 
son  it  awhile,  I'm  gratefully  thankful  that  I've  got  you  for 
a  companion,  that's  all !" 

Mark  smiled  at  this  oblique  compliment,  but  he  felt  well 
assured  that  Bob  meant  all  for  the  best.  After  a  short 
pause,  he  resumed  the  discourse  by  saying — 

"  I  have  been  thinking,  Bob,  of  the  possibility  of  getting 
the  ship  safely  down  as  far  as  this  island.  Could  we  but 
place  her  to  leeward  of  that  last  reef  off  the  weather  end 
of  the  island,  she  might  lie  there  years,  or  until  she  fell  to 
pieces  by  decay.  If  we  are  to  attempt  building  a  decked 
boat,  or  anything  large  enough  to  ride  out  a  gale  in,  we 
shall  want  more  room  than  the  ship's  decks  to  set  it  up  in. 
Besides,  we  could  never  get  a  craft  of  those  dimensions 
off  the  ship's  decks,  and  must,  of  necessity,  build  it  in 
some  place  where  it  may  be  launched.  Our  dingui  would 
never  do  to  be  moving  backward  and  forward,  so  great  a 
distance,  for  it  will  carry  little  more  than  ourselves.  All 
things  considered,  therefore,  I  am  of  opinion  we  can  do 
nothing  better  to  begin  with,  than  to  try  to  get  the  ship 
down  here,  where  we  have  room,  and  may  carry  out  our 
plans  to  some  advantage." 

Bob  assented  at  once  to  this  scheme,  and  suggested  one 
or  two  ideas  in  approbation  of  it,  that  were  new  even  to 
Mark.  Thus,  it  was  evident  to  both,  that  if  the  ship  her 
self  were  ever  to  get  clear  of  the  reef,  it  must  be  by  passing 
out  to  leeward :  and  by  bringing  her  down  to  the  island  so 
much  would  be  gained  on  the  indispensable  course.  Thus, 
added  Bob,  she  might  be  securely  moored  in  the  little  bay 
to  windward  of  the  island;  and,  in  the  course  of  time  it 


68  THE  CRATER; 

was  possible  that  by  a  thorough  examination  of  the  chan 
nels  to  the  westward,  and  by  the  use  of  buoys,  a  passage 
might  be  found,  after  all,  that  would  carry  them  out  to  sea. 
Mark  had  little  hope  of  ever  getting  the  Rancocus  extri 
cated  from  the  maze  of  rocks  into  which  she  had  so  blindly 
entered,  and  where  she  probably  never  could  have  come 
but  by  driving  over  some  of  them ;  but  he  saw  many  ad 
vantages  in  this  plan  of  removing  the  ship,  that  increased 
in  number  and  magnitude  the  more  he  thought  on  the 
subject.  Security  to  the  fresh  water  was  one  great  object 
to  be  attained.  Should  it  come  on  to  blow,  and  the  ship 
drift  down  upon  the  rocks  to  leeward  of  her,  she  would 
probably  go  to  pieces  in  an  hour  or  two,  when  not  only  all 
the  other  ample  stores  that  she  contained,  but  every  drop 
of  sweet  water  at  the  command  of  the  two  seamen,  would 
inevitably  be  lost.  So  important  did  it  appear  to  Mark  to 
make  sure  of  a  portion  of  this  great  essential,  at  least,  that 
he  would  have  proposed  towing  down  to  the  reef,  or  island, 
a  few  casks,  had  the  dingui  been  heavy  enough  to  render 
such  a  project  practicable.  After  talking  over  these  several 
points  still  more  at  large,  Mark  and  Bob  descended  from 
the  summit  of  the  crater,  made  half  of  its  circuit,  and  re 
turned  to  their  boat. 

As  the  day  continued  cahn,  Mark  was  in  no  hurry,  but 
passed"  half  an  hour  in  sounding  the  little  bay  that  was 
formed  by  the  sunken  rocks  that  lay  off  the  eastern,  or 
weather  end  of  the  Crater  Reef,  as,  in  a  spirit  of  humility, 
he  insisted  on  calling  that  which  everybody  else  now  calls 
Mark's  Reef.  Here  he  not  only  found  abundance  of  water 
for  all  he  wanted,  but  to  his  surprise  he  also  found  a  sandy 
bottom,  formed  no  doubt  by  the  particles  washed  from  the 
surrounding  rocks  under  the  never-ceasing  abrasion  of  the 
waves.  On  the  submerged  reef  there  were  only  a  few  inches 
of  water,  and  our  mariners  saw  clearly  that  it  was  possible 
to  secure  the  ship  in  this  basin,  in  a  very  effectual  manner, 
could  they  only  have  a  sufficiency  of  good  weather  in  which 
to  do  it. 

After  surveying  the  basin,  itself,  with  sufficient  care, 
Bob  pulled  the  dingui  back  towards  the  ship,  Mark  sound 
ing  as  they  proceeded.  But  two  difficulties  were  found 
between  the  points  that  it  was  so  desirable  to  bring  in 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  69 

communication  with  each  other.  One  of  these  difficulties 
consisted  in  a  passage  between  two  lines  of  reef,  that  ran 
nearly  parallel  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  and  which  were 
only  half  a  cable' s-length  asunder.  There  was  abundance 
of  water  between  these  reefs,  but  the  difficulty  was  in  the 
course,  and  in  the  narrowness  of  the  passage.  Mark 
passed  through  the  latter  four  several  times,  sounding  it, 
as  it  might  be,  foot  by  foot,  and  examining  the  bottom  with 
the  eye ;  for,  in  that  pellucid  water,  with  the  sun  near  tne 
zenith,  it  was  possible  to  see  two  or  three  fathoms  down, 
and  nowhere  did  he  find  any  other  obstacle  than  this  just 
mentioned.  Nor  was  any  buoy  necessary,  the  water  break 
ing  over  the  southern  end  of  the  outer,  and  over  the  north 
ern  end  of  the  inner  ledge,  and  nowhere  else  near  by,  thus 
distinctly  noting  the  very  two  points  where  it  would  be 
necessary  to  alter  the  course. 

The  second  obstacle  was  much  more  serious  than  that 
just  described.  It  was  a  reef  with  a  good  deal  of  water 
over  most  of  it ;  so  much,  indeed,  that  the  sea  did  not 
break  unless  in  heavy  gales,  but  not  enough  to  carry  a 
ship  like  the  Rancocus  over,  exjcept  in  one,  and  that  a  very 
contracted  pass,  of  less  than  a  hundred  feet  in  width. 
This  channel  it  would  be  indispensably  necessary  to  buoy, 
since  a  variation  from  the  true  course  of  only  a  few  fathoms 
would  infallibly  produce  the  loss  of  the  ship.  All  the  rest 
of  the  distance  was  easily  enough  made  by  a  vessel  stand 
ing  down,  by  simply  taking  care  not  to  run  into  visible 
breakers. 

Mark  and  Bob  did  not  get  back  to  the  Rancocus  until 
near  three  o'clock.  They  found  everything  as  they  had 
left  it,  and  the  pigs,  poultry  and  goat,  glad  enough  to  see 
them,  and  beginning  to  want  their  victuals  and  drink. 
The  two  first  are  to  be  found  on  board  of  every  ship,  but 
the  last  is  not  quite  so  usual.  Captain  Crutchely  had 
brought  one  along  to  supply  milk  for  his  tea,  a  beverage 
that,  oddly  enough,  stood  second  only  to  grog  in  his  favour. 
After  Bob  had  attended  to  the  wants  of  the  brute  animals, 
he  and  Mark  again  sat  down  on  the  windlass  to  make 
another  c;  \  repast  on  broken  meat — as  yet,  they  had  not 
the  hearts  ,  >  cook  anything.  As  soon  as  this  homely  meal 
was  taken  Mark  placed  a  couple  of  buoys  in  the  dingui, 


70  TIIECRATER; 

with  the  pig-iron  that  was  necessary  to  anchor  them,  and 
proceeded  to  the  spot  on  the  reef,  where  it  was  proposed 
to  place  them. 

Our  mariners  were  quite  an  hour  in  searching  for  the 
channel,  and  near  another  in  anchoring  the  buoys  in  a  way 
to  render  the  passage  perfectly  safe.  As  soon  as  this  was 
done,  Bob  pulled  back  to  the  ship,  which  was  less  than  a 
mile  distant,  as  fast  as  he  could,  for  there  was  every  ap 
pearance  of  a  change  of  weather.  The  moment  was  one, 
now,  that  demanded  great  coolness  and  decision.  Not 
more  than  an  hour  of  day  remained,  and  the  question  was 
whether  to  attempt  to  move  the  ship  that  night,  when  the 
channel  and  its  marks  were  all  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the 
two  seamen,  and  before  the  foul  weather  came,  or  to  trust 
to  the  cable  that  was  down  to  ride  out  any  blow  that  might 
happen.  Mark,  young  as  he  was,  thought  justly  on  most, 
professional  subjects.  He  knew  that  heavy  rollers  would 
come  in  across  the  reef  where  the  vessel  then  lay,  and  was 
fearful  that  the  cable  would  chafe  and  part,  should  it  come 
on  to  blow  hard  for  four-and-twenty  hours  continually. 
These  rollers,  he  also  knew  by  the  observation  of  that  day, 
were  completely  broken  and  dispersed  on  the  rocks,  before 
they  got  down  to  the  island,  and  he  believed  the  chances 
of  safety  much  greater  by  moving  the  ship  at  once,  than 
by  trying  the  fortune  of  another  night  out  where  she  then 
lay.  Bob  submitted  to  this  decision  precisely  as  if  Mark 
was  still  his  officer,  and  no  sooner  got  his  orders  than  he 
sprang  from  sail  to  sail,  and  rope  to  rope,  like  a  cat  playing 
among  the  branches  of  some  tree.  In  that  day,  spensers 
were  unknown,  staysails  doing  their  duty.  Thus  Bob 
loosed  the  jib,  main-topmast  and  mizen-staysails,  and  saw 
the  spanker  clear  for  setting.  While  he  was  thus  busied, 
Mark  was  looking  to  the  stopper  and  shank-painter  of  the 
sheet-anchor,  which  had  been  got  ready  to  let  go,  before 
Captain  Crutchely  was  lost.  He  even  succeeded  in  get 
ting  that  heavy  piece  of  metal  a  cock-bill,  without  calling 
on  Bob  for  assistance. 

It  was  indeed  time  for  them  to  be  in  a  hurry ;  for  the 
wind  began  to  come  in  puffs,  the  sun  was  sinking  into  a 
bank  of  clouds,  and  all  along  the  horizon  to  windward  the 
sky  looked  dark  and  menacing.  Once  Mark  changed  his 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  71 

mind,  determining  to  hold  on,  and  let  go  the  sheet-anchor 
where  he  was,  should  it  become  necessary ;  but  a  lull 
tempted  him  to  proceed.  Bob  shouted  out  that  all  was 
ready,  and  Mark  lifted  the  axe  with  which  he  was  armed, 
and  struck  a  heavy  blow  on  the  cable.  That  settled  the 
matter ;  an  entire  strand  was  separated,  and  three  or  four 
more  blows  released  the  ship  from  her  anchor.  Mark  now 
sprang  to  the  jib-halliards,  assisting  Bob  to  hoist  the  sail. 
This  was  no  sooner  done  than  he  went  aft  to  the  wheel, 
where  he  arrived  in  time  to  help  the  ship  to  fall  off.  The 
spanker  was  next  got  out  as  well  as  two  men  could  do  it 
in  a  hurry,  and  then  Bob  went  forward  to  tend  the  jib- 
sheet,  and  to  look  out  for  the  buoys. 

It  was  indispensable  in  such  a  navigation  to  make  no 
mistake,  and  Mark  enjoined  the  utmost  vigilance  on  his 
friend.  Twenty  times  did  he  hail  to  inquire  if  the  buoys 
were  to  be  seen,  and  at  last  he  was  gratified  by  an  answer 
in  the  affirmative. 

"  Keep  her  away,  Mr.  Mark — keep  her  away,  you  may, 
sir;  we  are  well  to  windward  of  the  channel.  Ay,  that'll 
do,  Mr.  Woolston — that 's  your  beauty,  sir.  Can't  you  get 
a  sight  of  them  b'ys  yourself,  sir?" 

"  Not  just  yet,  Bob,  and  so  much  the  greater  need  that 
you  should  look  out  the  sharper.  Give  the  ship  plenty  of 
room,  and  I  '11  let  her  run  down  for  the  passage,  square  for 
the  channel." 

Bob  now  ran  aft,  telling  the  mate  he  had  better  go  on 
the  forecastle  himself  and  conn  the  ship  through  the  pas 
sage,  which  was  a  place  he  did  not  like.  Mark  was  vexed 
that  the  change  should  be  made  just  at  that  critical  instant, 
but  bounding  forward,  he  was  between  the  knight-heads 
in  half  a  minute,  looking  out  for  the  buoys.  At  first,  he 
could  not  see  them ;  and  then  he  most  felt  the  imprudence 
of  Bob's  quitting  his  post  in  such  a  critical  instant.  In 
another  minute,  however,  he  found  one ;  and  presently  the 
other  came  in  sight,  fearfully  close,  as  it  now  appeared  to 
our  young  mariner,  to  its  neighbour.  The  position  of  the 
ship,  nevertheless,  was  sufficiently  to  windward,  leaving 
plenty  of  room  to  keep  off  in.  As  soon  as  the  ship  was  far 
enough  ahead,  Mark  called  out  to  Bob  to  put  his  helm 
hard  up.  This  was  done,  and  away  the  Rancocus  went, 


72  THE   CRATER; 

Mark  watching  her  with  the  utmost  vigilance,  lest  she 
should  sheer  a  little  too  much  to  the  one  side  or  to  the 
other.  He  hardly  breathed  as  the  vessel  glided  down  upon 
these  two  black  sentinels,  and,  for  an  instant,  he  fancied 
the  wind  or  the  current  had  interfered  with  their  positions. 
It  was  now  too  late,  however,  to  attempt  any  change,  and 
Mark  saw  the  ship  surging  onward  on  the  swells  of  the 
ocean,  which  made  their  way  thus  far  within  the  reefs, 
with  a  greater  intensity  of  anxiety  than  he  had  ever  before 
experienced  in  his  life.  Away  went  the  ship,  and  each 
time  she  settled  in  the  water,  our  young  man  expected  to 
hear  her  keel  grating  on  the  bottom,  but  it  did  not  touch. 
Presently  the  buoys  were  on  her  quarters,  and  then  Mark 
knew  that  the  danger  of  this  one  spot  was  passed ! 

The  next  step  was  to  find  the  southern  end  of  the  outer 
ledge  that  formed  the  succeeding  passage.  This  was  not 
done  until  the  ship  was  close  aboard  of  it.  A  change  had 
come  over  the  spot  within  the  last  few  hours,  in  conse 
quence  of  the  increase  of  wind,  the  water  breaking  all 
along  the  ledge,  instead  of  on  its  end  only ;  but  Mark 
cared  not  for  this,  once  certain  he  had  found  that  end. 
He  was  now  half-way  between  his  former  anchorage  and 
the  crater,  and  he  could  distinguish  the  latter  quite  plainly. 
But  sail  was  necessary  to  carry  the  ship  safely  through  the 
channel  ahead,  and  Mark  called  to  Bob  to  lash  the  helm 
a-midships  after  luffing  up  to  his  course,  and  to  spring  to 
the  main-topmast  staysail  halliards,  and  help  him  hoist  the 
sail.  This  was  soon  done,  and  the  new  sail  was  got  up, 
and  the  sheet  hauled  aft.  Next  followed  the  mizen  stay 
sail,  which  was  spread  in  the  same  manner.  Bob  then 
flew  to  the  wheel,  and  Mark  to  his  knight-heads  again. 
Contrary  to  Mark's  apprehensions,  he  saw  that  the  ship 
was  luffing  up  close  to  the  weather  ledge,  leaving  little 
danger  of  her  going  on  to  it.  As  soon  as  met  by  the  helm, 
however,  she  fell  off,  and  Mark  no  longer  had  any  doubt 
of  weathering  the  northern  end  of  the  inner  ledge  of  this 
passage.  The  wind  coming  in  fresher  puffs,  this  was  soon 
done,  when  the  ship  was  kept  dead  away  for  the  crater. 
There  was  the  northern  end  of  the  reef,  which  formed  the 
inn<  basin  of  all,  to  double,  when  that  which  remained  to 
do<>\  ;narely  to  range  far  enough  within  the  reef  to  get 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  73 

a  cover,  and  to  drop  the  anchor.  In  order  to  do  this  with 
success,  Mark  now  commenced  hauling  down  the  jib.  By 
the  time  he  had  that  sail  well  in,  the  ship  was  off  the  end 
of  the  sunken  reef,  when  Bob  put  his  helm  a-starboard  and 
rounded  it.  Down  came  the  main-topmast  staysail,  and 
Mark  jumped  on  the  forecastle,  while  he  called  out  to  Bob 
to  lash  the  helm  a-lee.  In  an  instant  Bob  was  at  the  young 
man's  side,  and  both  waited  for  the  ship  to  luff  into  the 
wind,  and  to  forge  as  near  as  possible  to  the  reef.  This 
was  successfully  done  also,  and  Mark  let  go  the  stopper 
within  twenty  feet  of  the  wall  of  the  sunken  reef,  just  as 
the  ship  began  to  drive  astern.  The  canvas  was  rolled  up 
and  secured,  the  cable  payed  out,  until  the  ship  lay  just 
mid-channel  between  the  island  and  the  sea-wall  without, 
and  the  whole  secured.  Then  Bob  took  off  his  tarpaulin 
and  gave  three  cheers,  while  Mark  walked  aft,  silently 
returning  thanks  to  God  for  the  complete  success  of  this 
important  movement. 

Important  most  truly  was  this  change.  ISot  only  was 
the  ship  anchored,  with  her  heaviest  anchor  down,  and 
her  best  cable  out,  in  good  holding  ground,  and  in  a  basin 
where  very  little  swell  ever  penetrated,  and  that  entering 
laterally  arid  diminished  in  force;  but  there  she  was  within 
a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  the  island,  at  all  times  accessible 
by  means  of  the  dingui,  a  boat  that  it  would  not  do  to  trust 
in  the  water  at  all  outside  when  it  blew  in  the  least  fresh. 
In  short,  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  have  a  vessel  in  a  safer 
berth,  so  long  as  her  spars  and  hull  were  exposed  to  the 
gales  of  the  ocean,  or  one  that  was  more  convenient  to 
those  who  used  the  island.  By  getting  down  her  spars  and 
other  hamper,  the  power  of  the  winds  would  be  much 
lessened,  though  Mark  felt  little  apprehension  of  the  winds 
at  that  season  of  the  year,  so  long  as  the  sea  could  not 
make  a  long  rake  against  the  vessel.  He  believed  the  ship 
safe  for  the  present,  and  felt  the  hope  of  still  rinding  a  pas 
sage,  through  the  reef  to  leeward,  reviving  in  his  breast. 

Well  might  Mark  and  Bob  rejoice  in  the  great  feat  they 
had  just  performed.  That  night  it  blew  so  heavily  as  to 
leave  little  doubt  that  the  ship  never  could  have  been  kept 
at  her  anchor,  outside;  and  had  she  struck  adrift  in  the 
darkness  nothing  could  have  saved  them  from  almost  im- 


74  THE  CRATER; 

mediate  destruction.  The  rollers  came  down  in  tremen 
dous  billows,  breaking  and  roaring  on  all  sides  of  the  island, 
rendering  the  sea  white  with  their  foam,  even  at  midnight; 
but,  on  reaching  the  massive,  natural  wall  that  protected 
the  Rancocus,  they  dashed  themselves  into  spray  againsf 
it,  wetting  the  vessel  from  her  truck  down,  but  doing  her 
no  injury.  Mark  remained  on  deck  until  past  twelve 
o'clock,  when  finding  that  the  gale  was  already  breaking, 
he  turned  in  and  slept  soundly  until  morning.  As  for  Bob, 
he  had  taken  his  watch  below  early  in  the  evening,  and 
there  he  remained  undisturbed  until  the  appearance  of 
day,  when  he  turned  out  of  his  own  accord. 

Mark  took  another  look  at  the  sea,  reefs  and  islands, 
from  the  main-topmast  cross-trees  of  the  ship,  as  she  lay 
in  her  new  berth.  Of  course,  the  range  of  his  vision  was 
somewhat  altered  by  this  change  of  position,  and  especially 
did  he  see  a  greater  distance  to  the  westward,  or  towards 
the  lee  side  of  the  reefs.  Nothing  encouraging  was  made 
out,  however ;  the  young  man  rather  inclining  more  to  the 
opinion  than  he  had  ever  done  before,  that  the  vessel  could 
not  be  extricated  from  the  rocks  which  surrounded  her. 
With  this  conviction  strongly  renewed,  he  descended  to 
the  deck,  to  share  in  the  breakfast  Bob  had  set  about  pre 
paring,  the  moment  he  quitted  his  cat-tails;  for  Bob  in 
sisted  on  sleeping  in  the  forecastle,  though  Mark  had 
pressed  him  to  take  one  of  the  cabin  state-rooms.  This 
time  the  meal,  which  included  some  Tery  respectable  ship's 
coffee,  was  taken  on  the  cabin-table,  the  day  being  cloud 
less,  and  the  sun's  rays  possessing  a  power  that  made  it 
unpleasant  to  sit  long  anywhere  out  of  a  shade.  While 
the  meal  was  taken,  another  conversation  was  held  touch 
ing  their  situation. 

"  By  the  manner  in  which  it  blew  last  night,"  Mark  ob 
served,  "  I  doubt  if  we  should  have  had  this  comfortable 
cabin  to  eat  in  this  morning,  and  these  good  articles  to 
consume,  had  we  left  the  ship  outside  until  morning." 

"  I  look  upon  it  as  a  good  job  well  done,  Mr.  Mark," 
answered  Bob.  "  I  must  own  I  had  no  great  hopes  of  our 
ever  getting  here,  but  was  willing  to  try  it ;  for  them  rollers 
didn't  mind  half-a-dozen  reefs,  but  came  tumbling  in  over 
them,  in  a  way  to  threaten  the  old  'Cocus  with  being 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  75 

ground  into  powder.  For  my  part,  sir,  I  thank  God,  from 
the  bottom  of  my  heart,  that  we  are  here." 

"  You  have  reason  to  do  so,  Bob;  and  while  we  may 
boih  regret  the  misfortune  that  has  befallen  us,  we  had 
need  remember  how  much  better  off  we  are  than  our  ship 
mates,  poor  fellows ! — or  how  much  better  we  are  off  than 
many  a  poor  mariner  who  loses  his  vessel  altogether." 

"  Yes,  the  saving  of  the  ship  is  a  great  thing  for  us. 
We  can  hardly  call  this  a  shipwreck,  Mr.  Mark,  though 
we  have  been  ashore  once ;  it  is  more  like  being  docked, 
than  anything  else !" 

"  I  have  heard,  before,  of  vessels  being  carried  over 
reefs,  and  bars  of  rivers,  into  berths  they  could  not  quit," 
answered  Mark.  "  But,  reflect  a  moment,  Bob,  how  much 
better  our  condition  is,  than  if  we  had  been  washed  down 
on  this  naked  reef,  with  only  such  articles  to  comfort  us, 
as  could  be  picked  up  along  shore  from  the  wreck !" 

"  I  'm  glad  to  hear  you  talk  in  this  rational  way,  Mr. 
Mark;  for  it's  a  sign  you  do  not  give  up,  or  take  things 
too  deeply  to  heart.  I  was  afeard  that  you  might  be  think 
ing  too  much  of  Miss  Bridget,  and  make  yourself  more 
unhappy  than  is  necessary  for  a  man  who  has  things  so 
comfortable  around  him." 

"The  separation  from  my  wife  causes  me  much  pain, 
Belts,  but  I  trust  in  God.  It  has  been  in  his  pleasure  to 
place  us  in  this  extraordinary  situation,  and  I  hope  that 
something  good  will  come  of  it." 

"  That's  the  right  sentiments,  sir — only  keep  such  feel 
ings  uppermost,  and  we  shall  do  right  down  well.  Why, 
we  have  water,  in  plenty,  until  after  the  rainy  season  shall 
be  along,  when  we  can  catch  a  fresh  supply.  Then,  there 
is  beef  and  pork  enough  betwixt  decks  to  last  you  and  me 
five  or  six  years ;  and  bread  and  flour  in  good  quantities, 
to  say  nothing  of  lots  of  stnall  stores,  both  forward  and  aft." 

"  The  ship  is  well  found,  and,  as  you  say,  we  might  live 
a  long  time,  years  certainly,  on  the  food  she  contains 
There  is,  however,  one  thing  to  be  dreaded,  and  to  provide 
against  which  shall  be  my  first  care.  We  are  now  fifty 
days  on  salted  provisions,  and  fifty  more  will  give  us  both 
the  scurvy." 

"  The  Lord  in  his  mercy  protect  me  from  that  disease  I" 


76  T  II  E     C  R  A  T  E  R  ', 

exclaimed  Bob.  "  I  had  it  once,  in  an  old  v'y'ge  round 
the  Horn,  and  have  no  wish  to  try  it  ag'in.  But  there 
must  be  fish  in  plenty  among  these  rocks,  Mr.  Mark,  and 
we  have  a  good  stock  of  bread.  By  dropping  the  beef  and 
pork,  for  a  few  days  at  a  time,  might  we  not  get  shut  of 
the  danger  ?" 

"  Fish  will  help  us,  and  turtle  would  be  a  great  resource, 
could  we  meet  with  any  of  that.  But,  man  requires  mixed 
food,  meats  and  vegetables,  to  keep  him  healthy ;  and  no 
thing  is  so  good  for  the  scurvy  as  the  last.  The  worst  of 
our  situation  is  a  want  of  soil,  to  grow  any  vegetables  in. 
I  did  not  see  so  much  as  a  rush,  or  the  coarsest  sea-plant, 
when  we  were  on  the  island  yesterday.  If  we  had  soil, 
there  is  seed  in  plenty  on  board,  and  this  climate  would 
bring  forward  vegetation  at  a  rapid  rate." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,  and  I'll  tell  you  what  I've  got  in  the  way 
of  seeds,  myself.  You  may  remember  the  delicious  musk 
and  water-melons  we  fell  in  with  last  v'y'ge,  in  the  east. 
Well,  sir,  I  saved  some  of  the  seed,  thinking  to  give  it  to 
my  brother,  who  is  a  Jarsey  farmer,  you  know,  sir ;  and, 
sailor-like,  I  forgot  it  altogether,  when  in  port.  If  a  fellow 
could  get  but  a  bit  of  earth  to  put  them  melon-seeds  in, 
we  might  be  eating  our  fruit  like  gentlemen,  two  months 
hence,  or  three  months,  at  the  latest." 

"  That  is  a  good  thought,  Betts,  and  we  will  turn  it  over 
in  our  minds.  If  such  a  thing  is  to  be  done  at  all,  the 
sooner  it  is  done  the  better,  that  the  melons  may  be  getting 
ahead  while  we  are  busy  with  the  other  matters.  This  is 
just  the  season  to  put  seed  into  the  ground,  and  I  think 
we  might  make  soil  enough  to  sustain  a  few  hills  of  melons. 
If  I  remember  right,  too,  there  are  some  of  the  sweet  pota 
toes  left." 

Bob  assented,  and  during  the  rest  of  the  meal  they  did 
nothing  but  pursue  this  plan  of  endeavouring  to  obtain 
half-a-dozen  or  a  dozen  hills  of  melons.  As  Mark  felt  all 
the  importance  of  doing  everything  that  lay  in  his  power 
to  ward  off  the  scurvy,  and  knew  that  time  was  not  to  be 
lost,  he  determined  that  the  very  first  thing  he  would  now 
attend  to,  would  be  to  get  all  the  seed  into  as  much  ground 
as  he  could  contrive  to  make.  Accordingly,  as  soon  as 
the  breakfast  was  ended,  Mark  went  to  collect  his  seeds 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  77 

while  Bob  set  the  breakfast  things  aside,  after  properly 
cleaning  them. 

There  were  four  shoats  on  board,  which  had  been  kept 
in  the  launch,  until  that  boat  was  put  into  the  water,  the 
night  the  Rancocus  ran  upon  the  rocks.  Since  that  time 
they  had  been  left  to  run  about  the  decks,  producing  a 
good  deal  of  dirt,  and  some  confusion.  These  shoats  Bob 
now  caught,  and  dropped  into  the  bay,  knowing  that  their 
instinct  would  induce  them  to  swim  for  the  nearest  land. 
All  this  turned  out  as  was  expected,  and  the  pigs  were 
soon  seen  on  the  island,  snuffing  around  on  the  rocks,  and 
trying  to  root.  A  small  quantity  of  the  excrement  of  these 
animals  still  lay  on  the  deck,  where  it  had  been  placed 
when  the  launch  was  cleaned  for  service,  no  one  thinking 
at  such  a  moment  of  cleaning  the  decks.  It  had  been 
washed  by  the  sea  that  came  aboard  quite  across  the  deck, 
but  still  formed  a  pile,  and  most  of  it  was  preserved.  This 
manure  Mark  was  about  to  put  in  a  half-barrel,  in  order 
to  carry  it  ashore,  for  the  purpose  of  converting  it  into 
soil,  when  Bob  suddenly  put  an  end  to  what  he  was  about, 
by  telling  him  that  he  knew  where  a  manure  worth  two  of 
that  was  to  be  found.  An  explanation  was  asked  and 
given.  Bob,  who  had  been  several  voyages  on  the  western 
coast  of  America,  told  Mark  that  the  Peruvians  and  Chi 
lians  made  great  use  of  the  dung  of  aquatic  birds,  as  a 
manure,  and  which  they  found  on  the  rocks  that  lined  their 
coast.  Now  two  or  three  rocks  lay  near  the  reef,  that 
were  covered  with  this  deposit,  the  birds  still  hovering 
about  them,  and  he  proposed  to  take  the  dingui,  and  go 
in  quest  of  a  little  of  that  fertilizing  manure.  A  very  little, 
he  said,  would  suffice,  the  Spaniards  using  it  in  small 
quantities,  but  applying  it  at  different  stages  in  the  growth 
of  the  plant.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  Bob  had 
fallen  on  a  knowledge  of  the  use  of  the  article  which  is 
now  so  extensively  known  under  the  name  of  guano,  in  the 
course  of  his  wanderings,  and  was  enabled  to  communicate 
the  fact  to  his  companion.  Mark  knew  that  Belts  was  a 
man  of  severe  truth,  and  he  was  so  much  the  more  disposed 
to  listen  to  his  suggestion.  While  our  young  mate  was 
getting  the  boat  ready,  therefore,  Bob  collected  his  tools, 
provided  himself  with  a  bucket,  passed  the  half-barrel,  into 


78  THE  CRATER; 

which  Mark  had  thrown  the  sweepings  of  the  decks,  into 
the  dingui,  and  descended  himself  and  took  the  sculls. 
The  two  then  proceeded  to  Bob's  rock,  where,  amid  the 
screams  of  a  thousand  sea-birds,  the  honest  fellow  filled  his 
bucket  with  as  good  guano  as  was  ever  found  on  the  coast 
of  Peru. 

While  the  boat  was  at  the  rock,  Mark  saw  that  the  pigs 
had  run  round  to  the  western  end  of  the  island,  snuffing  at 
everything  that  came  in  their  way,  and  trying  in  vain  to 
root  wherever  one  of  them  could  insert  his  nose.  As  a 
hog  is  a  particularly  sagacious  animal,  Mark  kept  his  eyes 
on  them  while  Bob  was  picking  out  his  guano,  in  the  faint 
hope  that  they  might  discover  fresh  water,  by  means  of 
their  instinct.  In  this  way  he  saw  them  enter  the  gate 
way  of  the  crater,  pigs  being  pretty  certain  to  run  their 
noses  into  any  such  place  as  that. 

On  landing,  Mark  took  a  part  of  the  tools  and  the  bucket 
of  guano,  while  Bob  shouldered  the  remainder,  and  they 
went  up  to  the  hole,  and  entered  the  crater  together,  hav 
ing  landed  as  near  to  the  gate-way  as  they  could  get,  with 
that  object.  To  Mark's  great  delight  he  found  that  the 
pigs  were  now  actually  rooting  with  some  success,  so  far 
as  stirring  the  surface  was  concerned,  though  getting  ab 
solutely  nothing  for  their  pains.  There  were  spots  on  the 
plain  of  the  crater,  however,  where  it  was  possible,  by 
breaking  a  sort  of  crust,  to  get  down  into  coarse  ashes  that 
were  not  entirely  without  some  of  the  essentials  of  soil. 
Exposure  to  the  air  and  water,  with  mixing  up  with  sea 
weed  and  such  other  waste  materials  as  he  could  collect, 
the  young  man  fancied  would  enable  him  to  obtain  a  suffi 
ciency  of  earthy  substances  to  sustain  the  growth  of  plants. 
While  on  the  summit  of  the  crater-wall,  he  had  seen  two 
or  three  places  where  it  had  struck  him  sweet-potatoes  and 
beans  might  be  made  to  grow,  and  he  determined  to  ascend 
to  those  spots,  and  make  his  essay  there,  as  being  the  most 
removed  from  the  inroads  of  the  pigs.  Could  he  only  suc 
ceed  in  obtaining  two  or  three  hundred  melons,  he  felt 
that  a  great  deal  would  be  done  in  providing  the  means  of 
checking  any  disposition  to  scurvy  that  might  appear  in 
'Bob  or  himself.  In  this  thoughtful  manner  did  one  so 
young  look  ahead,  and  make  provision  for  the  future. 


OR, 


PEAK.  79 


CHAPTER  VI. 

" that  done,  partake 

The  season,  prime  for  sweetest  scents  and  airs ; 
Then  commune  how  that  day  they  best  may  ply 
Their  growing  work ;  for  much  their  work  outgrew 
The  hands  dispatch  of  two  gard'ning  so  wide." 

MILTON. 

OUR  two  mariners  had  come  ashore  well  provided  with 
the  means  of  carrying  out  their  plans.  The  Rancocus 
was  far  better  provided  with  tools  suited  to  the  uses  of  the 
land,  than  was  common  for  ships,  her  voyage  contemplating 
a  long  stay  among  the  islands  she  was  to  visit.  Thus,  axes 
and  picks  were  not  wanting.  Captain  Crutchely  having  had 
an  eye  to  the  possible  necessity  of  fortifying  himself  against 
savages.  Mark  now  ascended  the  crater-wall  with  a  pick 
on  his  shoulder,  and  a  part  of  a  coil  of  ratlin-stuff  around 
his  neck.  As  he  went  up,  he  used  the  pick  to  make  steps, 
and  did  so  much  in  that  way,  in  the  course  often  minutes, 
as  greatly  to  facilitate  the  ascent  and  descent  at  the  parti 
cular  place  he  had  selected.  Once  on  the  summit,  he 
found  a  part  of  the  rock  that  overhung  its  base,  and  dropped 
one  end  of  his  line  into  the  crater.  To  this  Bob  attached 
the  bucket,  which  Mark  hauled  up  and  emptied.  In  this 
manner  everything  was  transferred  to  the  top  of  the  crater- 
wall  that  was  needed  there,  when  Bob  went  down  to  the 
dirigui  to  roll  up  the  half-barrel  of  sweepings  that  had  been 
brought  from  the  ship. 

Mark  next  looked  about  for  the  places  which  had  seemed 
to  him,  on  his  previous  visit,  to  have  most  of  the  character 
of  soil.  He  found  a  plenty  of  these  spots,  mostly  in  de 
tached  cavities  of  no  great  extent,  where  the  crust  had  not 
yet  formed ;  or,  having  once  formed,  had  been  disturbed 
by  the  action  of  the  elements.  These  places  he  first  picked 
to  pieces  with  his  pick ;  then  he  stirred  them  well  up  with 
a  hoe,  scattering  a  little  guano  in  the  heaps,  according  to 


80  THE   CRATER; 

the  directions  of  Betts.  When  this  was  done,  he  sent 
down  the  bucket,  and  hauled  up  the  sweepings  of  the  deck, 
which  Bob  had  ready  for  him,  below.  Nor  was  this  all 
Bob  had  done,  during  the  hour  Mark  was  at  work,  in  the 
sun,  on  the  summit  of  the  crater.  He  had  found  a  large 
deposit  of  sea-weed,  on  a  rock  near  the  island,  and  had 
made  two  or  three  trips  with  the  dingui,  back  and  forth, 
to  transfer  some  of  it  to  the  crater.  After  all  his  toil  and 
trouble,  the  worthy  fellow  did  not  get  more  than  a  hogs 
head  full  of  this  new  material,  but  Mark  thought  it  well 
worth  while  to  haul  it  up,  and  to  endeavour  to  mix  it  with 
his  compost.  This  was  done  by  making  it  up  in  bundles, 
as  one  would  roll  up  hay,  of  a  size  that  the  young  man 
could  manage. 

Bob  now  joined  his  friend  on  the  crater-wall,  and  as 
sisted  in  carrying  the  sea-weed  to  the  places  prepared  to 
receive  it,  when  both  of  the  mariners  next  set  about  mixing 
it  up  with  the  other  ingredients  of  the  intended  soil.  After 
working  for  another  hour  in  this  manner,  they  were  of 
opinion  that  they  might  make  the  experiment  of  putting  in 
the  seed.  Melons,  of  both  sorts,  and  of  the  very  best 
quality,  were  now  put  into  the  ground,  as  were  also  beans, 
peas,  and  Indian-corn,  or  maize.  A  few  cucumber-seeds, 
and  some  onions  were  also  tried,  Captain  Crutchely  having 
brought  with  him  a  considerable  quantity  of  the  common 
garden  seeds,  as  a  benefit  conferred  on  the  natives  of  the 
islands  he  intended  to  visit,  and  through  them  on  future 
navigators.  This  care  proceeded  from  his  owners,  who 
were  what  is  called  '  Friends,'  and  who  somewhat  oddly 
blended  benevolence  with  the  practices  of  worldly  gain. 

Mark  certainly  knew  very  little  of  gardening,  but  Bob 
could  turn  his  hand  to  almost  anything.  Several  mistakes 
were  made,  notwithstanding,  more  particularly  in  the  use 
of  the  seed,  with  which  they  were  not  particularly  ac 
quainted.  Mark's  Reef  lay  just  within  the  tropics,  it  is 
true  (in  21°  south  latitude),  but  the  constant  sea-breeze 
rendered  its  climate  much  cooler  than  would  otherwise 
have  been  the  case.  Thus  the  peas,  and  beans,  and  even 
the  onions,  did  better,  perhaps,  on  the  top  of  the  crater, 
than  they  would  have  done  in  it ;  but  the  ochre,  egg-plants, 
melons,  and  two  or  three  other  seeds  that  they  used,  would 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  81 

probably  have  succeeded  better  had  they  been  placed  in 
the  warmest  spots  which  could  be  found.  In  one  respect 
Mark  made  a  good  gardener.  He  knew  that  moisture  was 
indispensable  to  the  growth  of  most  plants,  and  had  taken 
care  to  put  all  his  seeds  into  cavities,  where  the  rain  that 
fell  (and  he  had  no  reason  to  suppose  that  the  dry  season 
had  yet  set  in)  would  not  run  off  and  be  wasted.  On  this 
point  he  manifested  a  good  deal  of  judgment,  using  his 
hoe  in  a  way  to  avoid  equally  the  danger  of  having  too 
much  or  too  little  water. 

It  was  dinner-time  before  Mark  and  Betts  were  ready 
to  quit  the  '  Summit,'  as  they  now  began  to  term  the  only 
height  in  their  solitary  domains.  Bob  had  foreseen  the 
necessity  of  a  shade,  and  had  thrown  an  old  royal  into  the 
boat.  With  this,  and  two  or  three  light  spars,  he  contrived 
to  make  a  sort  of  canopy,  down  in  the  crater,  beneath 
which  he  and  Mark  dined,  and  took  their  siestas.  While 
resting  on  a  spare  studding-sail  that  had  also  been  brought 
along,  the  mariners  talked  over  what  they  had  done,  and 
what  it  might  be  best  to  undertake  next. 

Thus  far  Mark  had  been  working  under  a  species  of 
excitement,  that  was  probably  natural  enough  to  his  situa 
tion,  but  which  wanted  the  coolness  and  discretion  that  are 
necessary  to  render  our  efforts  the  most  profitable  to  our 
selves,  or  to  others.  Now,  that  the  feverish  feeling  which 
set  him  at  work  so  early  to  make  a  provision  against  wants 
which,  at  the  worst,  were  merely  problematical,  had  sub 
sided,  Mark  began  to  see  that  there  remained  many  things 
to  do,  which  were  of  even  more  pressing  necessity  than 
anything  yet  done.  Among  the  first  of  these  there  was 
the  perfect  security  of  the  ship.  So  long  as  she  rode  at  a 
single  anchor,  she  could  not  be  considered  as  absolutely 
safe ;  for  a  shift  of  wind  would  cause  her  to  swing  against 
the  '  sea-wall,'  as  he  called  the  natural  breakwater  outside 
of  her,  where,  if  not  absolutely  wrecked,  she  might  receive 
material  damage.  Prudence  required,  therefore,  that  the 
ship  should  be  moored,  as  well  as  anchored.  Neverthe 
less,  there  was  a  good  deal  of  truth  in  what  Mark  had  said 
touching  the  plants  growing  while  he  and  Bob  were  busy 
at  other  matters ;  and  this  thought,  of  itself,  formed  a  suf 
ficient  justification  for  what  he  had  just  done,  much  as  it 


82  THE   CRATER; 

had  been  done  under  present  excitement.  As  they  lay 
under  the  shade  of  the  royal,  our  mariners  discussed  these 
matters,  and  matured  some  plans  for  the  future. 

At  two  o'clock  Mark  and  Bob  resumed  their  work. 
The  latter  suggested  the  necessity  of  getting  food  and 
water  ashore  for  the  pigs,  as  an  act  that  humanity  imperi 
ously  demanded  of  them;  not  humanity  in  the  sense  of 
feeling  for  our  kind,  but  in  the  sense  in  which  we  all  ought 
to  feel  for  animal  suffering,  whether  endured  by  man  or 
beast.  Mark  assented  as  to  the  food,  but  was  of  opinion 
a  thunder  shower  was  about  to  pass  over  the  reef.  The 
weather  certainly  did  wear  this  aspect,  and  Bob  was  con 
tent  to  wait  the  result,  in  order  to  save  himself  unnecessary 
trouble.  As  for  the  pigs,  they  were  still  in  the  crater 
rooting,  as  it  might  be  for  life  or  death,  though  nothing 
edible  had  as  yet  rewarded  them  for  their  toil.  Perhaps* 
they  found  it  pleasant  to  be  thrusting  their  noses  into  some 
thing  that  resembled  soil,  after  so  long  a  confinement  to 
the  planks  of  a  ship.  Seeing  them  at  work  in  this  man 
ner,  suggested  to  Mark  to  try  another  experiment,  which 
certainly  looked  far  enough  ahead,  as  if  he  had  no  great 
hopes  of  getting  off  the  island  for  years  to  come.  Among 
the  seeds  of  Captain  Crutchely  were  those  of  oranges, 
lemons,  limes,  shaddocks,  figs,  and  grapes;  all  plants  well 
enough  suited  to  the  place,  if  there  were  only  soil  to  nou 
rish  them.  Now,  one  of  the  hogs  had  been  rooting,  as 
best  he  might,  just  tinder  the  wall,  on  the  northern  side  of 
the  crater,  making  a  long  row  of  little  hillocks,  of  earthy 
ashes,  at  unequal  distances  it  is  true,  but  well  enough  dis 
posed  for  the  nature  of  the  different  fruits,  could  they  only 
be  got  to  grow.  Along  this  irregular  row  of  hillocks  did 
Mark  bury  his  seeds,  willing  to  try  an  experiment  which 
might  possibly  benefit  some  other  human  being,  if  it  never 
did  any  good  to  himself.  When  this  was  done,  he  and 
Betts  left  the  crater,  driving  the  hogs  out  before  them. 

Having  made  his  plantation,  Mark  felt  a  natural  desire 
to  preserve  it.  He  got  the  royal,  therefore,  and  succeeded 
in  fastening  it  up  as  a  substitute  for  a  gate,  in  their  natural 
gate-way.  Had  the  pigs  met  with  any  success  in  rooting, 
it  is  not  probable  this  slight  obstacle  would  have  prevented 
their  finding  their  way,  again,  into  the  cavity  of  the  crater ; 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  83 

but,  as  it  was,  it  proved  all-sufficient,  and  the  sail  was  per 
mitted  to  hang  before  the  hole,  until  a  more  secure  gate 
was  suspended  in  its  stead. 

The  appearances  of  the  thunder-shower  were  so  much 
increased  by  this  time,  that  our  mariners  hastened  back  to 
the  ship  in  order  to  escape  a  ducking.  They  had  hardly 
got  on  board  before  the  gust  came,  a  good  deal  of  water 
falling,  though  not  in  the  torrents  in  which  one  sometimes 
sees  it  stream  down  within  the  tropics.  In  an  hour  it  was 
all  over,  the  sun  coming  out  bright  and  scorching,  after 
the  passage  of  the  gust.  One  thing  occurred,  however, 
which  at  first  caused  both  of  the  seamen  a  good  deal  of 
uneasiness,  and  again  showed  them  the  necessity  there  was 
for  mooring  the  ship.  The  wind  shifted  from  the  ordinary 
direction  of  the  trades,  during  the  squall,  to  a  current  of 
air  that  was  nearly  at  right  angles  to  the  customary  course. 
This  caused  the  ship  to  swing,  and  brought  her  so  near  the 
sea-wall,  that  once  or  twice  her  side  actually  rubbed  against 
it.  Mark  was  aware,  by  his  previous  sounding,  that  this 
wall  rather  impended  over  its  base,  being  a  part  of  an  old 
crater,  beyond  a  question,  and  that  there  was  little  danger 
of  the  vessel's  hitting  the  bottom,  or  taking  harm  in  any 
other  way  than  by  friction  against  the  upper  part ;  but  this 
friction  might  become  too  rude,  and  finally  endanger  the 
safety  of  the  vessel. 

As  soon  as  the  weather  became  fine,  however,  the  trades 
returned,  and  the  ship  swung  round  to  her  old  berth.  Bob 
now  suggested  the  expediency  of  carrying  out  their  hea 
viest  kedge  ashore,  of  planting  it  in  the  rocks,  and  of  run 
ning  out  to  it  two  or  three  parts  of  a  hawser,  to  which  a 
line  of  planks  might  be  lashed,  and  thus  give  them  the 
means  of  entering  and  quitting  the  ship,  without  having 
recourse  to  the  dingui.  Mark  approved  of  this  plan,  and, 
it  requiring  a  raft  to  carry  ashore  the  kedge,  the  dingui 
being  so  light  they  were  afraid  to  trust  it,  it  was  decided 
to  commence  that  work  in  the  morning.  For  the  rest  of 
the  present  day  nothing  further  was  done,  beyond  light 
and  necessary  jobs,  and  continuing  the  examination  of  the 
island.  Mark  was  curious  to  look  at  the  effect  of  the 
shower,  both  in  reference  to  his  plantations,  and  to  the 
quantity  of  fresh  water  that  might  have  lodged  on  the  ree£ 


84  THE  CRATER; 

It  was  determined,  therefore,  to  pass  an  hour  or  two  ashore 
before  the  night  shut  in  again. 

Previously  to  quitting  the  ship,  Bob  spoke  of  the  poultry. 
There  were  but  six  hens,  a  cock,  and  five  ducks,  left. 
They  were  all  as  low  in  flesh  and  spirits,  as  it  was  usual 
to  find  birds  that  have  been  at  sea  fifty  days,  and  the  honest 
tar  proposed  turning  them  all  adrift  on  the  reef,  to  make 
their  own  living  in  the  best  way  they  could.  Now  and 
then  a  little  food  might  be  put  in  their  way,  but  let  them 
have  a  chance  for  their  lives.  Mark  assented  at  once,  and 
the  coops  were  opened.  Each  fowl  was  carried  to  the  land 
rail,  and  tossed  into  the  air,  when  it  flew  down  upon  the 
reef,  a  distance  of  a  couple  of  hundred  feet,  almost  as  a 
matter  of  course.  Glad  enough  were  the  poor  things  to 
be  thus  liberated.  To  Mark's  surprise,  no  sooner  did  they 
reach  the  reef,  than  to  work  they  went,  and  commenced 
picking  up  something  with  the  greatest  avidky,  as  if  let 
loose  in  the  best  supplied  poultry-yard.  Confident  there 
was  nothing  for  even  a  hen  to  glean  on  the  rocks  when  he 
left  there,  the  young  man  could  not  account  for  this,  until 
turning  his  eyes  inboard,  he  saw  the  ducks  doing  the  same 
thing  on  deck.  Examining  the  food  of  these  last-mentioned 
animals,  he  found  there  were  a  great  number  of  minute 
mucilaginous  particles  on  the  deck,  which  no  doubt  had 
descended  with  the  late  rain,  and  which  all  the  birds,  as 
well  as  the  hogs,  seemed  eager  to  devour.  Here,  then, 
was  a  supply,  though  a  short-lived  one,  of  a  manna  suited 
to  those  creatures,  which  might  render  them  happy  for  a 
few  hours,  at  least.  Bob  caught  the  ducks,  and  tossed 
them  overboard,  when  they  floundered  about  and  enjoyed 
themselves  in  a  way  that  communicated  a  certain  pleasure 
even  to  the  desolate  and  shipwrecked  men  who  had  set 
them  at  liberty.  Nothing  with  life  now  remained  in  the 
ship  but  the  goat,  and  Mark  thought  it  best  not  to  turn 
her  ashore  until  they  had  greater  facilities  for  getting  the 
necessary  food  to  her  than  the  dingui  afforded.  As  she 
was  not  likely  to  breed,  there  was  no  great  use  in  keeping 
this  animal  at  all,  to  say  nothing  of  the  means  of  feeding 
her,  for  any  length  of  time ;  but  Mark  was  unwilling  to 
take  her  life,  since  Providence  had  brought  them  all  to 
that  place  in  company.  Then  he  thought  she  might  be  a 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  85 

pretty  object  leaping  about  the  cliffs  of  the  crater,  giving 
the  island  a  more  lively  and  inhabited  appearance,  though 
he  foresaw  she  might  prove  very  destructive  to  his  planta 
tions,  did  his  vegetables  grow.  As  there  was  time  enough 
to  decide  on  her  final  fate,  it  was  finally  settled  she  should 
be  put  ashore,  and  have  a  comfortable  fortnight,  even 
though  condemned  to  die  at  the  end  of  that  brief  period. 

On  landing,  every  hole  in  the  face  of  the  cliff  was  found 
filled  with  fresh  water.  Betts  was  of  opinion  that  the 
water-casks  might  all  be  filled  with  the  water  which  was 
thus  collected,  the  fluid  having  seemingly  all  flowed  into 
these  receptacles,  while  little  had  gone  into  the  sea.  This 
was  encouraging  for  the  future, "at  any  rate;  the  want  of 
water,  previously  to  this  shower,  appearing  to  Mark  to  be 
a  more  probable  occurrence  than  the  want  of  food.  The 
sea  might  furnish  the  last,  on  an  emergency,  while  it  could 
do  nothing  with  the  first.  But  the  manner  in  which  the 
ducks  were  enjoying  themselves,  in  these  fresh  pools,  can 
scarcely  be  imagined !  As  Mark  stood  looking  at  them,  a 
doubt  first  suggested  itself  to  his  mind  concerning  the  pro 
priety  of  men's  doing  anything  that  ran  counter  to  their 
instincts,  with  any  of  the  creatures  of  God.  Pet-birds  in 
cages,  birds  that  were  created  to  fly,  had  always  been  dis 
agreeable  to  him  ;  nor  did  he  conceive  it  to  be  any  answer 
to  say  that  they  were  born  in  cages,  and  had  never  known 
liberty.  They  were  created  with  an  instinct  for  flight, 
arid  intense  must  be  their  longings  to  indulge  in  the  power 
which  nature  had  bestowed  on  them.  In  the  cage  in  which 
he  now  found  himself,  though  he  could  run,  walk,  leap, 
swim,  or  do  aught  that  nature  designed  him  to  do,  in  the 
way  of  mere  animal  exploits,  young  Mark  felt  how  bitter 
were  the  privations  he  was  condemned  to  suffer. 

The  rain  had  certainly  done  no  harm,  as  yet,  to  the 
planting.  All  the  hills  were  entire,  as  Mark  and  Bob  had 
left  them,  though  well  saturated  with  water.  In  a  few, 
there  might  be  even  too  much  of  the  element,  perhaps,  but 
Mark  observed  that  a  tropical  sun  would  soon  remove  that 
objection.  His  great  apprehension  was  that  he  had  com 
menced  his  gardening  too  late,  and  that  the  dry  weather 
might  set  in  too  soon  for  the  good  of  his  vegetables;  if  any 
of  them,  indeed,  ever  came  up  at  all.  Here  was  one  good 


86  THE  CRATER; 

soaking  secured,  at  all  events;  and,  knowing  the  power 
of  a  tropical  sun,  Mark  was  of  opinion  that  the  fate  of  the 
great  experiment  he  had  tried  would  soon  be  known.  Could 
he  succeed  in  producing  vegetation  among  the  debris  of 
the  crater,  he  and  Bob  might  find  the  means  of  subsistence 
during  their  natural  lives;  but,  should  that  resource  fail 
them,  all  their  hopes  would  depend  on  being  able  to  effect 
their  escape  in  a  craft  of  their  own  construction.  In  no 
case,  however,  but  that  of  the  direst  necessity,  did  Mark 
contemplate  the  abandonment  of  his  plan  for  getting  back 
to  the  inhabited  world,  his  country,  and  his  bride ! 

That  night  our  mariners  had  a  sounder  sleep  than  they 
had  yet  been  blest  with  since  the  loss  of  their  shipmates, 
and  the  accident  to  the  vessel  itself.  The  two  following 
days  they  passed  in  securing  the  ship.  Bob  actually  made 
a  very  respectable  catamaran,  or  raft,  out  of  the  spare 
spars,  sawing  the  topmasts  and  lower  yards  in  two,  for  that 
purpose,  and  fastening  them  together  with  ingenuity  and 
strength,  by  means  of  lashings.  But  Mark  hit  upon  an 
expedient  for  getting  the  two  kedges  ashore,  that  prevented 
the  necessity  of  having  recourse  to  the  raft  on  that  occa 
sion.  These  kedges  lay  on  the  poop,  where  they  were 
habitually  kept,  and  two  men  had  no  great  difficulty  in 
getting  them  over  the  stern,  suspended  by  stoppers.  Now 
Mark  had  ascertained  that  the  rock  of  the  Reef  rose  like 
a  wall,  being  volcanic,  like  all  the  rest  of  the  formation, 
and  that  the  ship  could  float  almost  anywhere  alongside  of 
it.  Aided  by  the  rake  of  the  stern  of  an  old-fashioned 
Philadelphia-built  ship,  nothing  was  easier  than  to  veer 
upon  the  cable,  let  the  vessel  drop  in  to  the  island,  until 
the  kedges  actually  hung  over  the  rocks,  and  then  lower 
the  last  down.  All  this  was  done,  and  the  raft  was  re 
served  for  other  purposes.  Notwithstanding  the  facility 
with  which  the  kedges  were  got  ashore,  it  took  Mark  and 
Bob  quite  half  a  day  to  plant  them  in  the  rock  precisely 
where  they  were  wanted.  When  this  was  accomplished, 
however,  it  was  so  effectually  done  as  to  render  the  hold 
even  greater  than  that  of  the  sheet-anchor.  The  stocks 
were  not  used  at  all,  but  the  kedges  were  laid  flat  on  the 
rock,  quite  near  to  each  other,  and  in  such  a  manner  that 
the  flukes  were  buried  in  crevices  of  the  lava,  giving  a 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  87 

most  secure  hold,  while  the  shanks  came  out  through 
natural  grooves,  leading  straight  towards  the  ship.  Six 
parts  of  a  hawser  were  bent  to  the  kedges,  three  to  each,  and 
these  parts  were  held  at  equal  distances  by  pieces  of  spars 
ingeniously  placed  between  them,  the  whole  being  kept  in 
its  place  by  regular  stretchers  that  were  lashed  along  the 
hawsers  at  distances  of  ten  feet,  giving  all  the  parts  of  the 
ropes  the  same  level.  Before  these  stretchers  were  se 
cured,  the  ship  was  hove  ahead  by  her  cable,  and  the 
several  parts  of  the  hawser  brought  to  an  equal  strain. 
This  left  the  vessel  about  a  hundred  feet  from  the  island, 
a  convenient,  and  if  the  anchor  held,  a  safe  position  ;  though 
Mark  felt  little  fear  of  losing  the  ship  against  rocks  that 
were  so  perpendicular  and  smooth.  On  the  stretchers 
planks  were  next  laid  and  lashed,  thus  making  a  clear  pas 
sage  between  the  vessel  and  the  shore,  that  might  be  used 
at  all  times,  without  recourse  to  the  dingui ;  besides  moor 
ing  the  ship  head  and  stern,  thereby  keeping  her  always 
in  the  same  place,  and  in  the  same  position. 

The  business  of  securing  the  ship  occupied  nearly  two 
days,  and  was  not  got  through  with  until  about  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day.  It  was  Saturday,  and 
Mark  had  determined  to  make  a  good  beginning,  and  keep 
all  their  Sabbaths,  in  future,  as  holy  times,  set  apart  for  the 
special  service  of  the  Creator.  He  had  been  born  and 
educated  an  Episcopalian,  but  Bob  claimed  to  be  a  Quaker, 
and  what  was  more  he  was  a  little  stiff  in  some  of  his  no 
tions  on  the  opinion  of  his  sect.  The  part  of  New  Jersey 
in  which  Belts  was  born,  had  many  persons  of  this  reli 
gious  persuasion,  and  he  was  not  only  born,  but,  in  one 
sense,  educated  in  their  midst;  though  the  early  age  at 
which  he  went  to  sea  had  very  much  unsettled  his  prac 
tice,  much  the  most  material  part  of  the  tenets  of  these 
good  persons.  When  the  two  knocked  off  work,  Saturday 
afternoon,  therefore,  it  was  with  an  understanding  that  the 
next  day  was  to  be  one  of  rest  in  the  sense  of  Christians, 
and,  from  that  time  henceforth,  that  the  Sabbath  was  to 
be  kept  as  a  holy  day.  Mark  had  ever  been  inclined  to 
soberness  of  thought  on  such  subjects.  His  early  engage 
ment  to  Bridget  had  kept  him  from  falling  into  the  ways 
of  most  mariners,  and,  time  and  again,  had  a  future  state 


88  THE  CRATER; 

of  being  been  the  subject  of  discourse  between  him  and 
his  betrothed.  As  the  seasons  of  adversity  are  those  in 
which  men  are  the  most  apt  to  bethink  them  of  their  duties 
to  God,  it  is  not  at  all  surprising  that  one  of  this  disposi 
tion,  thus  situated,  felt  renewed  demands  on  his  gratitude 
and  repentance. 

While  Mark,  in  this  frame  of  mind,  went  rambling 
around  his  narrow  domains,  Bob  got  the  dingui,  and  pro 
ceeded  with  his  fishing-tackle  towards  some  of  the  naked 
rocks,  that  lifted  their  caps  above  the  surface  of  the  sea, 
in  a  north-westerly  direction  from  the  crater.  Of  these 
naked  rocks  there  were  near  twenty,  all  within  a  mile  of 
the  crater,  and  the  largest  of  them  not  containing  more 
than  six  or  eight  acres  of  dry  surface.  Some  were  less 
than  a  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  The  great  extent  and 
irregular  formation  of  the  reefs  all  around  the  island,  kept 
the  water  smooth,  for  some  distance,  on  all  sides  of  it ;  and 
it  was  only  when  the  rollers  were  sent  in  by  heavy  gales, 
that  the  dingui  could  not  move  about,  in  this  its  proper 
sphere,  in  safety. 

Betts  was  very  fond  of  fishing,  and  could  pass  whole 
days,  at  a  time,  in  that  quiet  amusement,  provided  he  had 
a  sufficient  supply  of  tobacco.  Indeed,  one  of  the  greatest 
consolations  this  man  possessed,  under  the  present  misfor 
tune,  was  the  ample  store  of  this  weed  which  was  to  be 
found  in  the  ship.  Every  man  on  board  the  Rancocus, 
Mark  alone  excepted,  made  use  of  tobacco;  and,  for  so 
long  a  voyage,  the  provision  laid  in  had  been  very  abun 
dant.  On  this  occasion,  Bob  enjoyed  his  two  favourite 
occupations  to  satiety,  masticating  the  weed  while  he 
fished. 

With  Mark  it  was  very  different.  He  was  fond  of  his 
fowling-piece,  but  of  little  use  was  that  weapon  in  his  pre 
sent  situation.  Of  all  the  birds  that  frequented  the  adja 
cent  rocks,  not  one  was  of  a  sort  that  would  be  eaten,  un 
less  in  cases  of  famine.  As  he  walked  over  the  island, 
that  afternoon,  his  companion  was  the  goat,  which  had 
been  driven  ashore  on  the  new  gangway,  and  was  enjoying 
its  liberty  almost  as  much  as  the  ducks.  As  the  animal 
frisked  about  him,  accompanying  him  everywhere  in  his 
walks.  Mark  -was  reminded  of  the  goats  of  Crusoe,  and  his 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  89 

mind  naturally  adverted  to  the  different  accounts  of  ship 
wrecks  of  which  he  had  read,  and  to  a  comparison  between 
his  own  condition  and  those  of  other  mariners  who  had  been 
obliged  to  make  their  homes,  for  a  time,  on  otherwise  un 
inhabited  islands. 

In  this  comparison,  Mark  saw  that  many  things  made 
greatly  against  him,  on  the  one  hand;  while,  on  the  other, 
there  were  many  others  for  which  he  had  every  reason  to 
be  profoundly  grateful.  In  the  first  place,  this  island  was, 
as  yet,  totally  without  vegetation  of  every  kind.  It  had 
neither  plant,  shrub,  nor  tree.  In  this  he  suffered  a  great 
privation,  and  it  even  remained  to  be  proved  by  actual 
experiment,  whether  he  was  master  of  what  might  be  con 
sidered  the  elements  of  soil.  It  occurred  to  him  that 
something  like  vegetation  must  have  shown  itself,  in  or 
about  the  crater,  did  its  debris  contain  the  fertilizing  prin 
ciple,  Mark  not  being  sufficiently  versed  in  the  new  science 
of  chemical  agriculture,  to  understand  that  the  admixtures 
of  certain  elements  might  bring  to  life  forces  that  then 
were  dormant.  Then  the  Reef  had  no  water.  This  was 
a  very,  very  great  privation,  the  most  serious  of  all,  and 
might  prove  to  be  a  terrible  calamity.  It  is  true  that,  just 
at  that  moment,  there  was  a  shower  every  day,  and  some 
times  two  or  three  of  them ;  but  it  was  then  spring,  and 
there  could  be  little  reason  to  doubt  that  droughts  would 
come  in  the  hot  and  dry  season.  As  a  last  objection,  the 
Reef  had  no  great  extent,  and  no  variety,  the  eye  taking 
it  all  in  at  a  glance,  while  the  crater  was  its  sole  relief 
against  the  dullest  monotony.  Nor  was  there  a  bit  of  wood, 
or  fuel  of  any  sort  to  cook  with,  after  the  supply  now  in 
the  ship  should  be  exhausted.  Such  were  the  leading  dis 
advantages  of  the  situation  in  which  our  mariners  were 
placed,  as  compared  with  those  into  which  most  other 
shipwrecked  seamen  had  been  thrown. 

The  advantages,  on  the  other  hand,  Mark,  in  humble 
gratitude  to  God,  admitted  to  be  very  great.  In  the  first 
place,  the  ship  and  all  she  contained  was  preserved,  giving 
them  a  dwelling,  clothes,  food  and  water,  as  well  as  fuel, 
for  a  long  time  to  come ;  possibly,  aided  by  what  might  be 
gleaned  on  even  that  naked  reef,  sufficient  to  meet  all  their 
wants  for  the  duration  of  a  human  life  The  cargo  of  the 
8* 


90  THE  CRATER; 

Rancocus  was  of  no  great  extent,  and  of  little  value  in  a 
civilized  country;  but  Mark  knew  that  it  included  many 
articles  that  would  be  of  vast  service  where  he  was.  The 
beads  and  coarse  trinkets  with  which  it  had  been  intended 
to  trade  with  the  savages,  were  of  no  use  whatever,  it  is 
true ;  but  the  ship's  owners  were  pains-taking  and  thought 
ful  Quakers,  as  has  been  already  intimated,  who  blended 
with  great  shrewdness  i'n  the  management  of  their  worldly 
aifairs,  a  certain  regard  to  benevolence  in  general,  and  a 
desire  to  benefit  their  species.  On  this  principle,  they  had 
caused  a  portion  of  their  cargo  to  be  made  up,  sending,  in 
addition  to  all  the  ruder  and  commoner  tools,  that  could 
be  used  by  a  people  without  domestic  animals,  a  small 
supply  of  rugs,  coarse  clothes,  coarse  earthen-ware,  and  a 
hundred  similar  things,  that  would  be  very  serviceable  to 
any  who  knew  how  to  use  them.  Most  of  the  seeds  came 
from  these  thoughtful  merchants. 

If  fresh  water  were  absolutely  wanting  on  the  reef,  it 
rained  a  good  deal ;  in  the  rainy  season  it  must  rain  for  a 
few  weeks  almost  incessantly,  and  the  numerous  cavities 
in  the  ancient  lava,  formed  natural  cisterns  of  great  capa 
city.  By  taking  the  precaution  of  filling  up  the  water- 
casks  of  the  ship,  periodically,  there  was  little  danger  of 
suffering  for  the  want  of  this  great  requisite.  It  is  true, 
the  sweet,  cool,  grateful  draught,  that  was  to  be  got  from 
the  gushing  spring,  must  be  forgotten ;  but  rain-water  col 
lected  in  clean  rock,  and  preserved  in  well -sweetened 
casks,  was  very  tolerable  drinking  for  seamen.  Captain 
Crutchely,  moreover,  had  a  filterer  for  the  cabin,  and 
through  it  all  the  water  used  there  was  habitually  passed. 

In  striking  the  balance  between  the  advantages  and  dis 
advantages  of  his  own  situation,  as  compared  with  that  of 
other  shipwrecked  mariners,  Mark  confessed  that  he  had 
quite  as  much  reason  to  be  grateful  as  to  repine.  The 
last  he  was  resolved  not  to  do,  if  possible;  and  he  pursued 
his  walk  in  a  more  calm  and  resigned  mood  than  he  had 
been  in  since  the  ship  entered  among  the  shoals. 

Mark,  naturally  enough,  cast  his  eyes  around  him,  and 
asked  himself  the  question  what  was  to  be  done  with  the 
domestic  animals  they  had  now  all  landed.  The  hogs 
might,  or  might  not  be  of  the  greatest  importance  to  them 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  91 

as  their  residence  on  the  island  was  or  was  not  protracted, 
and  as  they  found  the  means  of  feeding  them.  There  was 
still  food  enough  in  the  ship  to  keep  these  creatures  for 
some  months,  and  food  that  had  been  especially  laid  in  for 
that  purpose ;  but  that  food  would  serve  equally  well  for 
the  fowls,  and  our  young  man  was  of  opinion,  that  eggs 
would  be  of  more  importance  to  himself  and  Betts,  than 
hog's  flesh.  Then  there  was  the  goat;  she  would  soon 
cease  to  be  of  any  use  at  all,  and  green  food  was  not  to  be 
had  for  her.  A  little  hay,  however,  remained ;  and  Mark 
was  fully  determined  that  Kitty,  as  the  playful  little  thing 
was  called,  should  live  at  least  as  long  as  that  lasted.  She 
was  fortunate  in  being  content  with  a  nourishment  that  no 
other  animal  wanted. 

Mark  could  see  absolutely  nothing  on  the  rocks  for  a 
bird  to  live  on,  yet  were  the  fowls  constantly  picking  up 
something.  They  probably  found  insects  that  escaped  his 
sight ;  while  it  was  certain  that  the  ducks  were  revelling 
in  the  pools  of  fresh  water,  of  which  there  might,  at  that 
moment,  have  been  a  hundred  on  the  reef.  As  all  these 
creatures  were,  as  yet,  regularly  fed  from  the  supplies  in 
the  ship,  each  seemed  to  be  filled  with  the  joy  of  existence ; 
and  Mark,  as  he  walked  among  them,  felt  how  profound 
ought  to  be  his  own  gratitude,  since  he  was  still  in  a  state 
of  being  which  admitted  of  a  consciousness  of  happiness 
so  much  beyond  anything  that  was  known  to  the  inferior 
animals  of  creation.  He  had  his  mind,  with  all  its  stores 
gathered  from  study  and  observation,  his  love  for  God,  and 
his  hopes  of  a  blessed  future,  ever  at  command.  Even  his 
love  for  Bridget  had  its  sweets,  as  well  as  its  sorrows.  It 
was  grateful  to  think  of  her  tenderness  to  himself,  her 
beauty,  her  constancy,  of  which  he  would  not  for  a  moment 
doubt,  and  of  all  the  innocent  and  delightful  converse  they 
had  had  during  a  courtship  that  occupied  so  much  of  their 
brief  lives. 

Just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  Bob  returned  from  his  fish 
ing  excursion.  To  Mark's  surprise,  he  saw  that  the  dingui 
floated  almost  with  her  gun  wale-to,  and  he  hastened  down 
to  meet  his  friend,  who  came  ashore  in  a  little  bay,  quite 
near  the  gate-way,  and  in  which  the  rock  did  not  rise  as 
much  like  a  wall  as  it  did  on  most  of  the  exterior  of  the 


92  TIIECRATER, 

reef.  Bob  had  caught  about  a  dozen  fish,  some  of  which 
were  of  considerable  size,  though  all  were  of  either  species 
or  varieties  that  were  unknown  to  them  both.  Selecting 
two  of  the  most  promising-looking,  for  their  own  use,  he 
threw  the  others  on  the  rocks,  where  the  pigs  and  poultry 
might  give  them  a  trial.  Nor  was  it  long  before  these 
creatures  were  hard  at  work  on  them,  disregarding  the 
scales  and  fins.  At  first  the  hens  were  a  little  delicate, 
probably  from  having  found  animal  food  enough  for  their 
present  wants  in  the  insects ;  but,  long  before  the  game 
was  demolished,  they  had  come  in  for  their  full  share. 
This  experiment  satisfied  the  mariners  that  there  would  be 
no  difficulty  in  furnishing  plenty  of  food  for  all  their  stock, 
and  for  any  length  of  time,  Kitty  excepted.  It  is  true,  the 
pork  and  the  poultry  would  be  somewhat  fishy ;  but  that 
would  be  a  novelty,  and  should  it  prove  disagreeable  on 
tasting  it,  a  little  clean  feeding,  at  the  proper  moment, 
would  correct  the  flavour. 

But  the  principal  cargo  of  the  dingui  was  not  the  dozen 
fish  mentioned.  Bob  had  nearly  filled  the  boat  with  a  sort 
of  vegetable  loam,  that  he  had  found  lodged  in  the  cavity 
of  one  of  the  largest  rocks,  and  which,  from  the  signs 
around  the  place,  he  supposed  to  have  been  formed  by  de 
posits  of  sea-weed.  By  an  accident  of  nature,  this  cavity 
in  the  rock  received  a  current,  which  carried  large  quan 
tities  of  floating  weed  into  it,  while  every  storm  probably 
had  added  to  its  stores  since  the  mass  had  risen  above  the 
common  level  of  the  sea,  by  throwing  fresh  materials  on 
to  the  pile,  by  means  of  the  waves,  nothing  quitting  it. 
Bob  reported  that  there  were  no  signs  of  vegetation  around 
the  rock,  which  circumstance,  however,  was  easily  enough 
accounted  for  by  the  salt  water  that  was  incessantly  moist 
ening  the  surface,  and  which,  while  it  took  with  it  the 
principle  of  future,  was  certain  to  destroy  all  present,  vege 
table  life ;  or,  all  but  that  which  belongs  exclusively  to 
aquatic  plants. 

"  How  much  of  this  muck  do  you  suppose  is  to  be  found 
on  your  rock,  Bob  ?"  asked  Mark,  after  he  had  examined 
the  dingui's  cargo,  by  sight,  taste,  and  smell.  "  It  is  sur 
prisingly  like  a  rich  earth,  if  it  be  not  actually  so." 

"  Lord  bless  you,  Mr,  Mark,  there  is  enough  on't  to  fill 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  93 

the  old  'Cocus,  ag'in  and  ag'in.  How  deep  it  is,  I  don't 
pretend  to  know;  but  it's  a  good  hundred  paces  across  it, 
and  the  spot  is  as  round  as  that  there  chimbly,  that  you 
call  a  cr'ature." 

"  If  that  be  the  case,  we  will  try  our  hands  at  it  next 
week,  and  see  what  can  be  done  with  an  importation.  I 
do  not  give  up  the  blessed  hope  of  the  boat,  Bob — that  you 
will  always  bear  in  mind — but  it  is  best  to  keep  an  eye  on 
the  means  of  living,  should  it  please  God  to  prevent  our 
getting  to  sea  again." 

"  To  sea,  Mr.  Mark,  neither  you  nor  I,  nor  any  mortal 
man  will  ever  get,  in  the  old  'Cocus  ag'in,  as  I  know  by 
the  looks  of  things  outside  of  us.  'T  will  never  do  to  plant 
in  my  patch,  however,  for  the  salt  water  must  wash  it 
whenever  it  blows;  though  a  very  little  work,  too,  might 
keep  it  out,  when  I  come  to  think  on  it.  Sparrowgrass 
would  grow  there,  as  it  is,  desperately  well ;  and  Friend 
Abraham  White  had  both  seeds  and  roots  put  up  for  the 
use  of  the  savages,  if  a  body  only  know'd  whereabouts  to 
look  for  them,  among  the  lot  of  ruboish  of  that  sort,  that 
he  sent  aboard." 

"  All  the  seeds  and  roots  are  in  two  or  three  boxes,  in 
the  steerage,"  answered  Mark.  "  I  '11  just  step  up  to  the 
crater  and  bring  a  shovel,  to  throw  this  loam  out  of  the 
boat  with,  while  you  can  clean  the  fish  and  cook  the  sup 
per.  A  little  fresh  food,  after  so  much  salt,  will  be  both 
pleasant  and  good  for  us." 

Bob  assented,  and  each  went  his  way.  Mark  threw  the 
loam  into  a  wheelbarrow,  of  which  Friend  Abraham  had 
put  no  less  than  three  in  the  ship,  as  presents  to  th«  savages, 
and  he  wheeled  it,  at  two  or  three  loads,  into  the  crater, 
where  he  threw  it  down  in  a  pile,  intending  to  make  a 
compost  heap  of  all  the  materials  of  the  sort  he  could  lay 
his  hands  on. 

As  for  Bob  he  cleaned  both  fish,  taking  them  on  board 
the  ship  to  do  so.  He  put  the  largest  and  coarsest  into 
the  coppers,  after  cutting  it  up,  mixing  with  it  onions, 
pork,  and  snip's  bread,  intending  to  start  a  fire  beneath  it 
early  in  the  morning,  and  cook  a  sort  of  chowder.  The 
other  he  fried,  Mark  and  he  making  a  most  grateful  meal 
gn  it,  that  evening. 


94 


THE   CRATER; 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Be  thou  at  peace  !  —  TV  all-seeing  eye, 
Pervading  earth,  and  air,  and  sky, 
The  searching  glance  which  none  may  flee, 
Is  still,  in  mercy,  turn'd  on  thee." 
MRS. 


THE  Sabbath  ever  dawns  on  the  piously-inclined,  with 
hope  and  a  devout  gratitude  to  the  Creator  for  all  his  mer 
cies.  This  is  more  apt  to  be  the  case  in  genial  seasons, 
and  rural  abodes,  perhaps,  than  amidst  the  haunts  of  men, 
and  when  the  thoughts  are  diverted  from  the  proper  chan 
nels  by  the  presence  of  persons  around  us.  Still  greater 
is  the  influence  of  absolute  solitude,  and  that  increased  by 
the  knowledge  of  a  direct  and  visible  dependence  on  the 
Providence  of  God,  for  the  means  of  even  prolonging  ex 
istence.  In  the  world,  men  lose  sight  of  this  dependence, 
fancying  themselves  and  their  powers  of  more  account 
than  the  truth  would  warrant,  and  even  forgetting  whence 
these  very  boasted  powers  are  derived  ;  but  man,  when 
alone,  and  in  critical  circumstances,  is  made  to  feel  that 
he  is  not  sufficient  for  his  own  wants,  and  turns  with  hu 
mility  and  hope  to  the  divine  hand  that  upholds  him. 

With  feelings  of  this  character,  did  Mark  and  Betts  keep 
their  first  Sabbath  on  the  reef.  The  former  read  the 
morning  service,  from  beginning  to  end,  while  the  latter 
sat  by,  an  attentive  listener.  The  only  proof  given  of  any 
difference  in  religious  faith  between  our  mariners,  was  of 
so  singular  a  nature  as  to  merit  notice.  Notwithstanding 
Bob's  early  familiarity  with  Mark,  his  greater  age,  and  the 
sort  of  community  of  feeling  and  interest  created  by  their 
common  misfortune,  the  former  had  not  ceased  to  treat  the 
last  with  the  respect  due  to  his  office.  This  deference 
never  deserted  him,  and  he  had  not  once  since  the  ship 
was  embayed,  entered  the  cabin  without  pulling  off  his  hat 
As  soon  as  church  commenced,  however,  Bob  resumed  bis 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  95 

tarpaulin,  as  a  sort  of  sign  of  his  own  orthodoxy  in  the 
faith  of  his  fathers;  making  it  a  point  to  do  as  they  had 
done  in  meeting,  and  slightly  concerned  lest  his  companion 
might  fall  into  the  error  of  supposing  he  was  a  man  likely 
to  be  converted.  Mark  also  observed  that,  in  the  course 
of  that  Sabbath,  Bob  used  the  pronouns  '  thee'  and  '  thou,' 
on  two  or  three  occasions,  sounding  oddly  enough  in  the 
mouth  of  the  old  salt. 

Well  did  both  our  mariners  prove  the  efficacy  of  the 
divine  provision  of  a  day  of  rest,  in  a  spiritual  sense,  on 
the  occasion  of  this  their  first  Sabbath  on  the  reef.  Mark 
felt  far  more  resigned  to  his  fate  than  he  could  have  be 
lieved  possible,  while  Betts  declared  that  he  should  be 
absolutely  happy,  had  he  only  a  better  boat  than  the  dingui ; 
not  that  the  dingui  was  at  all  a  bad  craft  of  its  kind,  but 
it  wanted  size.  After  the  religious  services,  for  which 
both  our  mariners  had  shaved  and  dressed,  they  took  a 
walk  together,  on  the  reef,  conversing  of  their  situation 
and  future  proceedings.  Bob  then  told  Mark,  for  the  first 
time,  that,  in  his  opinion,  there  was  the  frame  and  the 
other  materials  of  a  pinnace,  or  a  large  boat,  somewhere 
in  the  hold,  which  it  was  intended  to  put  together,  when 
the  ship  reached  the  islands,  as  a  convenience  for  cruising 
about  among  them  to  trade  with  the  savages,  and  to  trans 
port  sandal-wood.  The  mate  had  never  heard  of  this  boat, 
but  acknowledged  that  a  part  of  the  hold  had  been  stowed 
while  he  was  up  at  Bristol,  and  it  might  have  been  taken 
in  then.  Bob  confessed  that  he  had  never  seen  it,  though 
he  had  worked  in  the  stevedore's  gang;  but  was  confident 
he  had  heard  Friend  Abraham  White  and  Captain  Crutch- 
ely  talking  of  its  dimensions  and  uses.  According  to  his 
recollection  it  was  to  be  a  boat  considerably  larger  than 
the  launch,  and  to  be  fitted  with  masts  and  sails,  and  to 
have  a  half- deck.  Mark  listened  to  aH  this  patiently, 
though  he  firmly  believed  that  the  honest  fellow  was  de 
ceiving  himself  the  whole  time.  Such  a  craft  could  scarcely 
be  in  the  ship,  and  he  not  hear  of  it,  if  he  did  not  actually 
see  it ;  though  he  thought  it  possible  that  the  captain  and 
owners  may  have  had  some  such  plan  in  contemplation, 
and  conversed  together  on  it,  in  Betts's  presence.  As 
there  were  plenty  of  tools  on  board,  however,  by  using 


96  THE   CRATER; 

stuff  of  one  sort  or  another,  that  was  to  be  found  in  the 
ship,  Mark  had  strong  hopes  of  their  being  able,  between 
them,  to  construct,  in  the  course  of  time — though  he  be 
lieved  a  long  time  might  be  necessary — a  craft  of  some 
sort,  that  should  be  of  sufficient  stability  to  withstand  the 
billows  of  that  ordinarily  mild  sea,  and  enable  them  to  re 
turn  to  their  homes  and  friends.  In  conversing  of  things 
of  this  sort,  in  religious  observances,  and  in  speculating 
on  the  probable  fate  of  their  shipmates,  did  our  mariners 
pass  this  holy  day.  Bob  was  sensibly  impressed  with  the 
pause  in  their  ordinary  pursuits,  and  lent  himself  to  the 
proper  feelings  of  the  occasion  with  a  zeal  and  simplicity 
that  gave  Mark  great  satisfaction ;  for,  hitherto,  while 
aware  that  his  friend  was  as  honest  a  fellow  as  ever  lived, 
in  the  common  acceptation  of  such  a  phrase,  he  had  not 
supposed  him  in  the  least  susceptible  of  religious  impres 
sions.  But  the  world  had  suddenly  lost  its  hold  on  Betts, 
the  barrier  offered  by  the  vast  waters  of  the  Pacific,  being 
almost  as  impassable,  in  his  actual  circumstances,  as  that 
of  the  grave;  and  the  human  heart  turns  to  God  in  its 
direst  distress,  as  to  the  only  being  who  can  administer 
relief.  It  is  when  men  are  prosperous  that  they  vainly 
imagine  they  are  sufficient  for  their  own  wants,  and  are 
most  apt  to  neglect  the  hand  that  alone  can  give  durable 
support. 

The  following  morning  our  mariners  resumed  their  more 
worldly  duties  with  renewed  powers.  While  the  kettle 
was  boiling  for  their  tea,  they  rolled  ashore  a  couple  of 
empty  water-casks,  and  filled  them  with  fresh  water,  at  one 
of  the  largest  natural  reservoirs  on  the  reef;  it  having 
rained  hard  in  the  night.  After  breakfast,  Mark  walked 
round  to  examine  his  piles  of  loam,  in  the  crater,  while 
Bob  pulled  away  in  the  dingui,  to  catch  a  few  fish,  and  to 
get  a  new  cargo  of  the  earth;  it  being  the  intention  of 
Mark  to  join  him  at  the  next  trip,  with  the  raft,  which  re 
quired  some  little  arranging,  however,  previously  to  its 
being  used  for  such  a  purpose.  The  rain  of  the  past  night 
had  thoroughly  washed  the  pile  of  earth,  and,  on  tasting 
it.  Mark  was  convinced  that  much  of  the  salt  it  contained 
had  been  carried  off.  This  encouraged  him  to  persevere 
in  his  gardening  projects.  As  yet,  the  spring  had  only 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  97 

just  commenced,  and  he  was  in  hopes  of  being  able  to 
prepare  one  bed,  at  least,  in  time  to  obtain  useful  vegetables 
from  it. 

The  Rancocus  had  a  great  many  planks  and  boards  in 
her  hold,  a  part  of  the  ample  provision  made  by  her  own 
ers  for  the  peculiar  voyage  on  which  she  had  been  sent. 
Of  real  cargo,  indeed,  she  had  very  little,  the  commerce 
between  the  civilized  man  and  the  savage  being  ordinarily 
on  those  great  principles  of  Free  Trade,  of  which  so  much 
is  said  of  late  years,  while  so  little  is  understood,  and  which 
usually  give  the  lion's  share  of  the  profit  to  them  who  need 
it  least.  With  some  of  these  planks,  Mark  made  a  staging 
for  his  raft.  By  the  time  he  was  ready,  Bob  returned  with 
a  load  of  loam,  and,  on  the  next  outward  voyage,  the  raft 
was  taken  as  well  as  the  dingui.  Mark  had  fitted  pins  and 
grummets,  by  which  the  raft  was  rowed,  he  and  Bob  im 
pelling  it,  when  light,  very  easily  at  the  rate  of  two  rnilea 
in  the  hour. 

Mark  found  Betts's  deposit  of  decayed  vegetable  matter 
even  larger  and  more  accessible  than  he  had  hoped  for. 
A  hundred  loads  might  be  got  without  even  using  a  wheel 
barrow;  and  to  all  appearances  there  was  enough  of  it  to 
give  a  heavy  dressing  to  many  acres,  possibly  to  the  whole 
area  of  the  crater.  The  first  thing  the  young  man  did  was 
to  choose  a  suitable  place,  dig  it  well  up,  mixing  a  suffi 
ciency  of  guano  with  it,  agreeably  to  Betts's  directions, 
and  then  to  put  in  some  of  his  asparagus  roots.  After  this 
he  scattered  a  quantity  of  the  seed,  raking  the  ground  well 
after  sowing.  By  the  time  this  was  done,  Bob  had  both 
dingui  and  raft  loaded,  when  they  pulled  the  last  back  to 
the  reef,  towing  the  boat.  In  this  manner  our  two  mari 
ners  continued  to  work  most  of  the  time,  for  the  next  fort 
night,  making,  daily,  more  or  less  trips  to  the  '  loam-rock,' 
as  they  called  the  place  where  this  precious  deposit  had 
been  made ;  though  they  neglected  none  of  their  other  ne 
cessary  duties.  As  the  distance  was  short,  they  could 
come  and  go  many  times  in  a  day,  transporting  at  each 
trip  about  as  much  of  the  loam  as  would  make  an  ordinary 
American  cart-load  of  manure.  In  the  whole,  by  Mark's 
computation,  they  got  across  about  fifty  of  these  cargoes, 
ia  the  course  of  their  twelve  days'  work.  The  entire  day, 
0 


98  THE  CRATER; 

however,  was  on  no  occasion  given  up  wholly  to  this  pur 
suit.  On  the  contrary,  many  little  odd  tasks  were  com 
pleted,  which  were  set  by  their  necessities,  or  by  fore 
thought  and  prudence.  All  the  empty  water-casks,  for  one 
thing,  were  rolled  ashore,  and  filled  at  the  largest  pool; 
the  frequency  of  the  rains  admonishing  them  of  the  wisdom 
of  making  a  provision  for  the  dry  season.  The  Rancocus 
had  a  good  deal  of  water  still  left  in  her,  some  of  it  being 
excellent  Delaware  river  water,  though  she  had  filled  up 
at  Valparaiso,  after  passing  the  Horn.  Mark  counted  the 
full  casks,  and  allowing  ten  gallons  a  day  for  Bob  and  him 
self,  a  good  deal  more  than  could  be  wanted,  there  re 
mained  in  the  ship  fresh  water  enough  to  last  them  two 
years.  It  is  true,  it  was  not  such  water  as  the  palate  often 
craved  of  a  warm  day ;  but  they  were  accustomed  to  it,  and 
it  was  sweet.  By  keeping  it  altogether  between  decks,  the 
sun  had  no  power  on  it,  and  it  was  even  more  palatable 
than  might  have  been  supposed.  Mark  occasionally  longed 
for  one  good  drink  at  some  gushing  spring  that  he  remem 
bered  at  home,  it  is  true;  and  Bob  was  a  little  in  the  habit 
of  extolling  a  particular  well  that,  it  would  seem,  his  family 
were  reputed  to  have  used  for  several  generations.  Not 
withstanding  these  little  natural  backslidings  on  this  sub 
ject,  our  mariners  might  be  thought  well  off  on  the  score 
of  water,  having  it  in  great  abundance,  and  with  no  rea 
sonable  fear  of  ever  losing  it  altogether.  The  casks  taken 
ashore  were  filled  for  their  preservation,  as  well  as  for  con 
venience,  an  old  sail  being  spread  over  them,  after  they 
were  rolled  together  and  chocked.  As  yet,  no  water  was 
given  to  any  of  the  stock,  all  the  animals  finding  it  in 
abundance,  in  the  cavities  of  the  lava. 

Some  of  the  time,  moreover,  Betts  passed  in  fishing, 
supplying  not  only  Mark  and  himself,  but  the  pigs  arid  the 
poultry,  with  as  much  food  as  was  desired.  Several  of  the 
fish  caught  turned  out  to  be  delicious,  while  others  were 
of  a  quality  that  caused  them  to  be  thrown  into  the  com 
post  heap.  A  cargo  of  guano  was  also  imported,  the  rich 
manure  being  mixed  up  in  liberal  quantities  with  the  loam. 
At  the  end  of  the  first  week  of  these  voyages  to  '  loam- 
rock/  Betts  went  out  to  fish  in  a  new  direction,  passing  to 
windward  of  the  '  sea-wall/  as  they  called  the  reef  that 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  99 

protected  the  ship,  and  pulling  towards  a  bit  of  naked  rock 
a  short  distance  beyond  it,  where  he  fancied  he  might  find 
a  particular  sort  of  little  fish,  that  greatly  resembled  the 
Norfolk  Hog-fish,  one  of  the  most  delicious  little  creatures 
for  the  pan  that  is  to  be  found  in  all  the  finny  tribe.  He 
had  been  gone  a  couple  of  hours,  when  Mark,  who  was  at 
work  within  the  crater,  picking  up  the  encrusted  ashes  that 
formed  its  surface,  heard  Bob's  shout  outside,  as  if  he 
wished  assistance.  Throwing  down  the  pick,  our  young 
man  ran  out,  and  was  not  a  little  surprised  to  see  the  sort 
of  cargo  with  which  Bob  was  returning  to  port.  It  would 
seem  that  a  great  collection  of  sea-weed  had  formed  to 
windward  of  the  rock  where  Bob  had  gone  to  fish,  at  which 
spot  it  ordinarily  gathered  in  a  pile  until  the  heap  became 
too  large  to  lodge  any  longer,  when,  owing  to  the  form  of 
the  rock,  it  invariably  broke  adrift,  and  passed  to  the 
southward  of  the  Reef,  floating  to  leeward,  to  fetch  up  on 
some  other  rock,  or  island,  in  that  direction.  Bob  had 
managed  to  get  this  raft  round  a  particular  point  in  the 
reef,  when  the  wind  and  current  carried  it,  as  near  as 
might  be,  directly  towards  the  crater.  He  was  calling  to 
Mark  to  come  to  his  assistance,  to  help  get  the  raft  into  a 
sort  of  bay,  ahead  of  him,  where  it  might  be  lodged;  else 
would  there  be  the  danger  of  its  drifting  past  the  Reef, 
after  all  his  pains.  Our  young  man  saw,  at  once,  what 
was  wanted,  got  a  line,  succeeded  in  throwing  it  to  Bob, 
and  by  hauling  upon  it  brought  the  whole  mass  ashore  in 
the  very  spot  Betts  wished  to  see  it  landed. 

This  sea-weed  proved  to  be  a  great  acquisition  on  more 
accounts  than  one.  There  was  as  much  of  it  in  quantity 
as  would  have  made  two  good-sized  loads  of  hay.  Then, 
many  small  shell-fish  were  found  among  it,  which  the  pigs 
and  poultry  ate  with  avidity.  It  also  contained  seeds,  that 
the  fowls  picked  up  as  readily  as  if  it  had  been  corn.  The 
hogs  moreover  masticated  a  good  deal  of  the  weed,  and 
poor  Kitty,  the  only  one  of  the  domestic  animals  on  the 
Reef  that  was  not  now  living  to  its  heart's  content,  nibbled 
at  it,  with  a  species  of  half-doubting  faith  in  its  salubrity. 
Although  it  vvas  getting  to  be  late  in  the  afternoon,  Mark 
and  Bob  got  two  of  Friend  Abraham  White's  pitchforks 
(fox-  the  worthy  Quaker  had  sent  these,  among  other  im- 


100  THE   CRATER: 

plements  of  husbandry,  as  a  peace-offering  to  the  Fejee 
savages),  and  went  to  work  with  a  hearty  good-will,  landed 
all  this  weed,  loaded  it  up,  and  wheeled  it  into  the  crater, 
leaving  just  enough  outside  to  satisfy  the  pigs  and  the 
poultry.  This  task  concluded  the  first  week  of  the  labour 
already  mentioned. 

At  the  termination  of  the  second  week,  Mark  and  Betta 
held  a  council  on  the  subject  of  their  future  proceedings. 
At  this  consultation  it  was  decided  that  it  would  be  better 
to  finish  the  picking  up  of  a  considerable  plot  of  ground, 
one  of  at  least  half  an  acre  in  extent,  that  was  already 
commenced,  within  the  crater,  scatter  their  compost  over 
it,  and  spade  all  up  together,  and  plant,  mixing  in  as  much 
of  the  sea-weed  as  they  could  conveniently  spade  under. 
Nothwithstanding  their  success  in  finding  the  loam,  and 
this  last  discovery  of  a  means  of  getting  sea-weed  in  large 
supplies  to  the  Reef,  Mark  was  not  very  sanguine  of  suc 
cess  in  his  gardening.  The  loam  appeared  to  him  to  be 
cold  and  sour,  as  well  as  salt,  though  a  good  deal  fresh 
ened  by  the  rain  since  it  was  put  in  the  crater ;  and  he 
knew  nothing  of  the  effects  of  guano,  except  through  the 
somewhat  confused  accounts  of  Bob.  Then  the  plain  of 
the  crater  offered  nothing  beside  a  coarse  and  shelly  ashes. 
These  ashes  were  deep  enough  for  any  agricultural  pur 
pose,  it  is  true,  for  Mark  could  work  a  crowbar  down  into 
them  its  entire  length;  but  they  appeared  to  him  to  be 
totally  wanting  in  the  fertilizing  principle.  Nor  could  he 
account  for  the  absence  of  everything  like  vegetation,  on 
or  about  the  reef,  if  the  elements  of  plants  of  any  sort  were 
to  be  found  in  the  substances  of  which  it  was  composed. 
He  had  read,  however,  that  the  territory  around  active 
volcanoes,  and  which  was  far  enough  removed  from  the 
vent  to  escape  from  the  destruction  caused  by  lava,  scoriae 
and  heat,  was  usually  highly  fertile,  in  consequence  of  the 
ashes  and  impalpable  dust  that  was  scattered  in  the  air; 
but  seeing  no  proofs  of  any  such  fertility  here,  he  supposed 
that  the  adjacent  sea  had  swallowed  up  whatever  there 
might  have  been  of  these  bountiful  gifts.  With  these  im 
pressions,  it  is  not  surprising  that  Mark  was  disposed  to 
satisfy  himself  with  a  moderate  beginning,  in  preference 


OE,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  101 

to  throwing  away  time  and  labour  in  endeavouring  to  pro 
duce  resources  which  after  all  would  fail  them. 

Mark's  plan,  as  laid  before  his  companion,  on  the  occa 
sion  of  the  council  mentioned,  was  briefly  this : — He  pro 
posed  to  pass  the  next  month  in  preparing  the  half-acre 
they  had  commenced  upon,  and  in  getting  in  seed;  after 
which  they  could  do  no  more  than  trust  their  husbandry 
to  Providence  and  the  seasons.  As  soon  as  done  with  the 
tillage,  it  was  his  idea  that  they  ought  to  overhaul  the  ship 
thoroughly,  ascertain  what  was  actually  in  her,  and,  if  the 
materials  of  the  boat  mentioned  by  Betts  were  really  to  be 
found,  to  set  that  craft  up  as  soon  as  possible,  and  to  get 
it  into  the  water.  Should  they  not  find  the  frame  and 
planks  of  the  pinnace,  as  Betts  seemed  to  think  they  would, 
they  must  go  to  work  and  get  out  the  best  frame  they 
could  themselves,  and  construct  such  a  craft  as  their  own 
skill  could  contrive.  After  building  such  a  boat,  it  was 
Mark's  opinion  that  he  and  Bob  could  navigate  her  across 
that  tranquil  ocean,  until  they  reached  the  coast  of  South 
America,  or  some  of  the  islands  that  were  known  to  be 
friendly  to  the  white  man ;  for,  fifty  years  ago,  it  will  be 
remembered,  we  did  not  possess  the  same  knowledge  of 
the  Pacific  that  we  possess  to-day,  and  mariners  did  not 
trust  themselves  always  with  confidence  among  the  natives 
of  its  islands.  With  this  plan  pretty  well  sketched  out, 
then,  our  mariners  saw  the  first  month  of  their  captivity 
among  the  unknown  reefs  of  this  remote  quarter  of  the 
world,  draw  to  its  close. 

Mark  was  a  little  surprised  by  a  proposal  that  he  re 
ceived  from  Bob,  next  morning,  which  was  the  Sabbath,  of 
course.  "  Friends  have  monthly  meetings,"  Betts  observed, 
"  and  he  thought  they  ought  to  set  up  some  such  day  on 
the  Reef.  He  was  willing  to  keep  Christmas,  if  Mark 
saw  fit,  but  rather  wished  to  pay  proper  respect  to  all  the 
festivals  and  observances  of  Friends."  Mark  was  secretly 
amused  with  this  proposition,  even  while  it  pleased  him. 
The  monthly  meeting  of  the  Quakers  was  for  the  secular 
part  of  church  business,  as  much  as  for  the  purposes  of 
religious  worship ;  and  Bob  having  all  those  concerns  in 
his  own  hands,  it  was  not  so  easy  to  see  how  a  stated  day 
was  to  aid  him  any  in  carrying  out  his  church  government. 
y 


102  THE  CRATER; 

But  Mark  understood  the  feeling  which  dictated  this  re» 
quest,  and  was  disposed  to  deal  gently  by  it.  Betts  waa 
becoming  daily  more  and  more  conscious  of  his  depend 
ence  ©n  a  Divine  Providence,  in  the  situation  in  which  he 
was  thrown ;  and  his  mind,  as  well  as  his  feelings,  natu 
rally  enough  reverted  to  early  impressions  and  habits,  in 
their  search  for  present  relief.  Bob  had  not  the  clearest 
notions  of  either  the  theory  or  practice  of  his  sect,  but  he 
remembered  much  of  the  last,  and  believed  he  should  be 
acting  right  by  conforming  as  closely  as  possible  to  the 
*  usages  of  Friends.'  Mark  promised  to  take  the  matter 
into  consideration,  and  to  come  .to  some  decision  on  it,  at 
an  early  day. 

The  following  Monday  it  rained  nearly  the  whole  morn 
ing,  confining  our  mariners  to  the  ship.  They  took  that 
occasion  to  overhaul  the  '  'twixt-deck'  more  thoroughly 
than  had  yet  been  done,  and  particularly  to  give  the  seed- 
boxes  a  close  examination.  Much  of  the  lumber,  and  most 
of  the  tools  too,  were  stowed  on  this  deck,  and  something 
like  a  survey  was  also  made  of  them.  The  frame  and 
other  materials  of  the  pinnace  were  looked  for,  in  addition, 
but  without  any  success.  If  in  the  ship  at  all,  they  were 
certainly  not  betwixt  decks.  Mark  was  still  of  opinion  no 
such  articles  would  ever  be  found ;  but  Betts  insisted  on 
the  conversation  he  had  overheard,  and  on  his  having 
rightly  understood  it.  The  provision  of  tools  was  very 
ample,  and,  in  some  respects,  a  little  exaggerated  in  the 
way  of  Friend  White's  expectations  of  civilizing  the  people 
of  Fejee.  It  may  be  well,  here,  to  say  a  word  concerning 
the  reason  that  the  Rancocus  contained  so  many  of  these 
tributes  to  civilization.  The  voyage  of  the  ship,  it  will 
be  remembered,  was  in  quest  of  sandal-wood.  This  san 
dal-wood  was  to  be  carried  to  Canton  and  sold,  and  a  cargo 
of  teas  taken  in  with  the  avails.  Now,  sandal-wood  was 
supposed  to  be  used  for  the  purposes  of  idolatry,  being  said 
to  be  burned  before  the  gods  of  that  heathenish  people. 
Idolatry  being  one  of  the  chiefest  of  all  sins,  Friend  Abra 
ham  White  had  many  compunctions  and  misgivings  of 
conscience  touching  the  propriety  of  embarking  in  the 
trade  at  all.  It  was  true,  that  our  knowledge  of  the  Chi 
nese  customs  did  not  extend  far  enough  to  render  it  cer- 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  103 

tain  that  the  wood  was  used  for  the  purpose  of  burning 
before  idols,  some  pretending  it  was  made  into  ornamental 
furniture :  but  Friend  Abraham  White  had  heard  the  first, 
and  was  disposed  to  provide  a  set-off,  in  the  event  of  the 
report's  being  true,  by  endeavouring  to  do  something  to 
wards  the  civilization  of  the  heathen.  Had  he  been  a 
Presbyterian  merchant,  of  a  religious  turn,  it  is  probable 
a  quantity  of  tracts  would  have  been  made  to  answer  the 
purpose;  but,  belonging  to  a  sect  whose  practice  was 
generally  as  perfect  as  its  theory  is  imperfect,  Friend 
Abraham  White's  conscience  was  not  to  be  satisfied  with 
any  such  shallow  contrivance.  It  is  true  that  he  expected 
to  make  many  thousands  of  dollars  by  the  voyage,  arid 
doubtless  would  so  have  done,  had  not  the  accident  be 
fallen  the  ship,  or  had  poor  Captain  Crutchely  drank  less 
in  honour  of  his  wedding-day;  but  the  investment  in  tools, 
seeds,  pigs,  wheelbarrows,  and  other  matters,  honestly  in 
tended  to  better  the  condition  of  the  natives  of  Vanua 
Levu  and  Viti  Levu,  did  not  amount  to  a  single  cent  less 
<han  one  thousand  dollars,  lawful  money  of  the  republic. 

In  looking  over  the  packages,  Mark  found  white  clover 
seed,  and  Timothy  seed,  among  other  things,  in  sufficient 
quantity  to  cover  most  of  the  mount  of  the  crater.  The 
weather  temporarily  clearing  off,  he  called  to  Bob,  and 
they  went  ashore  together,  Mark  carrying  some  of  the 
grass  seed  in  a  pail,  while  Betts  followed  with  a  vessel  to 
hold  guano.  Providing  a  quantity  of  the  last  from  a  barrel 
that  had  been  previously  filled  with  it,  and  covered  to  protect 
it  from  the  rain,  they  clambered  up  the  side  of  the  crater. 
This  was  the  first  time  either  had  ascended  since  the  day 
they  finished  planting  there,  and  Mark  approached  his  hills 
with  a  good  deal  of  freshly-revived  interest  in  their  fate. 
From  them  he  expected  very  little,  having  had  no  loam  to 
mix  with  the  ashes;  but,  by  dwelling  so  much  of  late  on 
the  subject  of  tillage,  he  was  not  without  faint  hopes  of 
meeting  with  some  little  reward  for  the  pains  he  had  taken. 
The  reader  will  judge  of  the  rapture  then,  as  well  as  of  the 
surprise,  with  which  he  first  saw  a  hill  of  melons,  already 
in  the  fourth  leaf.  Here,  then,  was  the  great  problem 
successfully  solved.  Vegetation  had  actually  commenced 
on  that  hitherto  barren  mount,  and  the  spot  which  had  lain 


104  THE   CRATER; 

— how  long,  Mark  knew  not,  but  probably  for  a  thousand 
years,  if  not  for  thousands  of  years,  in  its  nakedness — was 
about  to  be  covered  with  verdure,  and  blest  with  fruitful- 
ness.  The  inert  principles  which,  brought  to  act  together, 
had  produced  this  sudden  change  from  barrenness  to  fer» 
tility,  had  probably  been  near  neighbours  to  each  other  all 
that  time,  but  had  failed  of  bringing  forth  their  fruits,  for 
the  want  of  absolute  contact.  So  Mark  reasoned,  for  he 
nothing  doubted  that  it  was  Betts's  guano  that  had  stimu 
lated  the  otherwise  barren  deposit  of  the  volcano,  and 
caused  his  seed  to  germinate.  The  tillage  may  have  aided, 
as  well  as  the  admission  of  air,  light  and  water ;  but  some 
thing  more  than  this,  our  young  gardener  fancied,  was 
wanting  to  success.  That  something  the  manure  of  birds, 
meliorated  and  altered  by  time,  had  supplied,  and  lo !  the 
glorious  results  were  before  his  eyes. 

It  would  not  be  easy  to  pourtray  to  the  reader  all  the 
delight  which  these  specks  of  incipient  verdure  conveyed 
to  the  mind  of  Mark  Woolston.  It  far  exceeded  the  joy 
that  would  be  apt  to  be  awakened  by  a  relief  from  an  ap 
prehension  of  wanting  food  at  a  distant  day,  for  it  resem 
bled  something  of  the  character  of  a  new  creation.  He 
went  from  hill  to  hill,  and  everywhere  did  he  discover 
plants,  some  just  peeping  through  the  ashes,  others  already 
in  leaf,  and  all  seemingly  growing  and  thriving.  Fortu 
nately,  Kitty  had  not  been  on  the  mount  for  the  last  fort 
night,  her  acquired  habits,  and  the  total  nakedness  of  the 
hills,  having  kept  her  below  with  the  other  animals,  since 
her  first  visits.  Mark  saw  the  necessity  of  keeping  her 
off  the  elevation,  which  she  would  certainly  climb  the  in 
stant  anything  like  verdure  caught  her  eyes  from  below. 
He  determined,  therefore,  to  confine  her  to  the  ship,  until 
he  had  taken  the  precautions  necessary  to  prevent  her  as* 
cending  the  mount.  This  last  was  easily  enough-  done. 
On  the  exterior  of  the  hills  there  were  but  three  places 
where  even  a  goat  could  get  up.  This  was  owing  to  the 
circumstance  that  the  base  of  the  ascent  rose  like  a  wall, 
for  some  ten  or  twelve  feet,  everywhere  but  at  the  three 
points  mentioned.  It  appeared  to  Mark  as  if  the  sea  had 
formerly  washed  around  the  crater,  giving  this  form  to  its 
bottom,  for  so  wall-like  was  the  rock  for  these  ten  or  twelve 


OE,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  105 

feet,  that  it  would  have  defied  the  efforts  of  a  man  for  a 
long  time,  t®  overcome  the  difficulties  of  the  ascent.  At 
two  of  the  places  where  the  debris  had  made  a  rough  foot 
ing,  half  an  hour's  work  would  remove  the  material,  and 
leave  these  spots  as  impassable  as  the  others.  At  the  third 
point,  it  might  require  a  good  deal  of  labor  to  effect  the 
object.  At  this  last  place,  Mark  told  Betts  it  would  be 
necessary,  for  the  moment,  to  make  some  sort  of  a  fence. 
Within  the  crater,  it  was  equally  difficult  to  ascend,  except 
at  one  or  two  places ;  but  these  ascents  our  mariners 
thought  of  improving,  by  making  steps,  as  the  animals 
were  effectually  excluded  from  the  plain  within  by  means 
of  the  sail  which  served  for  a  curtain  at  the  gateway,  or 
hole  of  entrance. 

As  soon  as  Mark  had  recovered  a  little  from  his  first 
surprise,  he  sent  Bob  below  to  bring  up  some  buckets  filled 
with  the  earth  brought  from  Loam  Rock,  or  island.  This 
soil  was  laid  carefully  around  each  of  the  plants,  the  two 
working  alternately  at  the  task,  until  a  bucket-full  had 
been  laid  in  each  hill.  Mark  did  not  know  it  at  the  time, 
but  subsequent  experience  gave  him  reason  to  suspect,  that 
this  forethought  saved  most  of  his  favourites  from  prema 
ture  deaths.  Seed  might  germinate,  and  the  plants  shoot 
luxuriantly  from  out  of  the  ashes  of  the  volcano,  under  the 
united  influence  of  the  sun  and  rains,  in  that  low  latitude ; 
but  it  was  questionable  whether  the  nourishment  to  be  de 
rived  from  such  a  soil,  if  soil  it  could  yet  be  called,  would 
prove  to  be  sufficient  to  sustain  the  plants  when  they  got 
to  be  of  an  age  and  size  to  demand  all  the  support  they 
wanted.  So  convinced  did  Mark  become,  as  the  season 
advanced,  of  the  prudence  of  what  he  then  did  out  of  a 
mere  impulse,  that  he  passed  hours,  subsequently,  in  raising 
loam  to  the  summit  of  the  mount,  in  order  to  place  it  in 
the  different  hills.  For  this  purpose,  Bob  rigged  a  little 
derrick,  and  fitted  a  whip,  so  that  the  buckets  were  whipped 
up,  sailor-fashion,  after  two  or  three  experiments  made  in 
lugging  them  up  by  hand  had  suggested  to  the  honest  fel 
low  that  there  might  be  a  cheaper  mode  of  obtaining  their 
wishes. 

When  Mark  was  temporarily  satisfied  with  gazing  at  his 
new-found  treasures,  he  went  to  work  to  scatter  the  grass 


106  THE   CRATER; 

eeed  over  the  summit  and  sides  of  the  crater.  Inside,  there 
was  not  much  motive  for  sowing  anything,  the  rock  being 
so  nearly  perpendicular  ;  but  on  the  outside  of  the  hill,  or 
'  mountain,'  as  Bob  invariably  called  it,  the  first  ten  or 
twelve  feet  excepted,  there  could  be  no  obstacle  to  the 
seeds  taking ;  though  from  the  want  of  soil  much  of  it,  Mark 
knew,  must  be  lost ;  but,  if  it  only  took  in  spots,  and  gave 
him  a  few  green  patches  for  the  eye  to  rest  on,  he  felt  he 
^hould  be  amply  rewarded  for  his  trouble.  Bob  scattered 
guano  wherever  he  scattered  grass-seed,  and  in  this  way 
they  walked  entirely  round  the  crater,  Mark  using  up  at 
least  half  of  Friend  Abraham  White's  provision  in  behalf 
of  the  savages  of  Fejee,  in  the  way  of  the  grasses.  A 
genial,  soft  rain  soon  came  to  moisten  this  seed,  and  to  em 
bed  it  with  whatever  there  was  of  soil  on  the  surface,  giv 
ing  it  every  chance  to  take  root  that  circumstances  would 
allow. 

This  preliminary  step  taken  towards  covering  the  face 
of  the  mount  with  verdure,  our  mariners  went  to  work  to 
lay  out  their  garden,  regularly,  within  the  crater.  Mark 
manifested  a  good  deal  of  ingenuity  in  this  matter  With 
occasional  exceptions  the  surface  of  the  plain,  or  the  bot 
tom  of  the  crater,  was  an  even  crust  of  no  great  thick 
ness,  composed  of  concrete  ashes,  scoria?,  &,c.,  but  which 
might  have  borne  the  weight  of  a  loaded  wagon.  This 
crust  once  broken,  which  it  was  not  very  difficult  to  do  by 
means  of  picks  and  crows,  the  materials  beneath  were  found 
loose  enough  for  the  purposes  of  agriculture,  almost  without 
using  the  spade.  Now,  space  being  abundant,  Mark  drew 
lines,  in  fanciful  and  winding  paths,  leaving  the  crust  for 
his  walks,  and  only  breaking  into  the  loose  materials  be 
neath,  wherever  he  wished  to  form  a  bed.  This  variety 
served  to  amuse  him  and  Betts,  and  they  worked  with  so 
much  the  greater  zeal,  as  their  labours  produced  objects 
that  were  agreeable  to  the  eye,  and  which  amused  them 
now,  while  they  promised  to  benefit  them  hereafter.  As 
each  bed,  whether  oval,  winding  or  straight,  was  dug,  the 
loam  and  sea-weed  was  mixed  up  in  it,  in  great  abundance, 
after  which  it  was  sown,  or  planted. 

Mark  was  fully  aware  that  many  of  Friend  Abraham 
White's  seeds,  if  they  grew  and  brought  their  fruits  to 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  107 

maturity,  would  necessarily  change  their  properties  in  that 
climate;  some  for  the  worse,  and  others  for  the  better. 
From  the  Irish  potato,  the  cabbage,  and  most  of  the  more 
northern  vegetables,  he  did  not  expect  much,  under  any 
circumstances;  but,  he  thought  he  would  try  all,  and 
having  several  regularly  assorted  boxes  of  garden-seeds, 
just  as  they  had  been  purchased  out  of  the  shops  of  Phila 
delphia,  his  garden  scarce  wanted  any  plant  that  was  then 
known  to  the  kitchens  of  America. 

Our  mariners  were  quite  a  fortnight  preparing,  manur 
ing,  and  sowing  their  parterre,  which,  when  complete,  oc 
cupied  fully  half  an  acre  in  the  very  centre  of  the  crater, 
Mark  intending  it  for  the  nucleus  of  future  similar  works, 
that  might  convert  the  whole  hundred  acres  into  a  gar 
den.  By  the  time  the  work  was  done,  the  rains  were 
less  frequent,  though  it  still  came  in  showers,  and  those 
that  were  still  more  favourable  to  vegetation.  In  that  fort 
night  the  plants  on  the  mount  had  made  great  advances, 
showing  the  exuberance  and  growth  of  a  tropical  climate. 
It  sometimes,  nay,  it  often  happens,  that  when  the  sun  is 
the  most  genial  for  vegetation,  moisture  is  wanting  to  aid 
its  power,  and,  in  some  respects,  to  counteract  its  influ 
ence.  These  long  and  periodical  droughts,  however,  are 
not  so  much  owing  to  heat  as  to  other  and  local  causes. 
Mark  now  began  to  hope,  as  the  spring  advanced,  that  his 
little  territory  was  to  be  exempt,  in  a  great  measure,  from 
the  curse  of  droughts,  the  trades,  and  some  other  causes 
that  to  him  were  unknown,  bringing  clouds  so  often  that 
not  only  shed  their  rain  upon  his  garden,  but  which  served 
in  a  great  measure  to  mitigate  a  heat  that,  without  shade 
of  some  sort  or  other,  would  be  really  intolerable. 

With  a  view  to  the  approaching  summer,  our  mariners 
turned  their  attention  to  the  constructing  of  a  tent  within 
the  crater.  They  got  some  old  sails  and  some  spars  ashore, 
and  soon  had  a  spacious,  as  well  as  a  comfortable  habita 
tion  of  this  sort  erected.  Not  only  did  they  spread  a  spa 
cious  tent  for  themselves,  within  the  crater,  but  they  erected 
another,  or  a  sort  of  canopy  rather,  on  its  outside,  for  the 
use  of  the  animals,  which  took  refuge  beneath  it,  during 
the  heats  of  the  day,  with  an  avidity  that  proved  how  wel 
come  it  was.  This  outside  shed,  or  canopy,  required  a 


108  THE  CRATER; 

good  deal  of  care  in  its  construction,  to  resist  the  wind, 
while  that  inside  scarce  ever  felt  the  breeze.  This  want 
of  wind,  or  of  air  in  motion,  indeed,  formed  the  most  se 
rious  objection  to  the  crater,  as  a  place  of  residence,  in  the 
hot  months ;  and  the  want  of  breeze  that  was  suffered  in 
the  tent,  set  Mark  to  work  to  devise  expedients  for  build 
ing  some  sort  of  tent,  or  habitation,  on  the  mount  itself, 
where  it  would  be  always  cool,  provided  one  could  get  a 
protection  from  the  fierce  rays  of  the  sun. 

After  a  good  deal  of  search,  Mark  selected  a  spot  on  the 
'  Summit,'  as  he  began  to  term  the  place,  and  pitched  his 
tent  on  it.  Holes  were  made  in  the  soft  rocks,  and  pieces 
of  spars  were  inserted,  to  answer  for  posts.  With  a  com 
mencement  as  solid  as  this,  it  was  not  difficult  to  make  the 
walls  of  the  tent  (or  marquee  would  be  the  better  word, 
since  both  habitations  had  nearly  upright  sides)  by  means 
of  an  old  fore-course.  In  order  to  get  the  canvas  up  there, 
however,  it  was  found  necessary  to  cut  out  the  pieces  be 
low,  when,  by  means  of  the  purchase  at  the  derrick,  it  was 
all  hoisted  to  the  Summit. 

These  several  arrangements  occupied  Mark  and  Bob 
another  fortnight,  completing  the  first  quarter  of  a  year 
they  had  passed  on  the  Reef.  By  this  time  they  had  got 
accustomed  to  their  situation,  and  had  fallen  into  regulai 
courses  of  duty,  though  the  increasing  heats  admonisheo 
both  of  the  prudence  of  not  exposing  themselves  too  muck 
beneath  the  fiery  sun  at  noon-day. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  109 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

« Now,  from  the  full-grown  day  a  beamy  shower 
Gleams  on  the  lake,  and  gilds  each  glossy  flower, 
Gay  insects  sparkle  in  the  genial  blaze, 
Various  as  light,  and  countless  as  its  rays — 
Now,  from  yon  range  of  rocks,  strong  rays  rebound, 
Doubling  the  day  on  flow'r^r  plains  around." 

SAYAOE. 

AFTER  the  tent  on  the  Summit  was  erected,  Mark  passed 
much  of  his  leisure  time  there.  Thither  he  conveyed 
many  of  his  books,  of  which  he  had  a  very  respectable  col 
lection,  his  flute,  and  a  portion  of  his  writing  materials. 
There  he  could  sit  and  watch  the  growth  of  the  different 
vegetables  he  was  cultivating.  As  for  Bob,  he  fished  a 
good  deal,  both  in  the  way  of  supplies  and  for  his  amuse 
ment.  The  pigs  and  poultry  fared  well,  and  everything 
seemed  to  thrive  but  poor  Kitty.  She  loved  to  follow  Mark, 
and  cast  many  a  longing  look  up  at  the  Summit,  whenever 
she  saw  him  strolling  about  among  his  plants. 

The  vegetables  on  the  Summit,  or  those  first  put  into 
the  ground,  flourished  surprisingly.  Loam  had  been  added 
repeatedly,  and  they  wanted  for  nothing  that  could  bring 
forward  vegetation.  The  melons  soon  began  to  run,  as 
did  the  cucumbers,  squashes,  and  pumpkins;  and  by  the 
end  of  the  next  month,  there  were  a  dozen  large  patches 
on  the  mount  that  were  covered  by  a  dense  verdure.  Nor 
was  this  all;  Mark  making  a  discovery  about  this  time, 
that  afforded  him  almost  as  much  happiness  as  when  he 
first  saw  his  melons  in  leaf.  He  was  seated  one  day,  with 
the  walls  of  his  tent  brailed  up,  in  order  to  allow  the  wind 
to  blow  through,  when  something  dark  on  the  rock  caught 
his  eye.  This  spot  was  some  little  distance  from  him,  and 
going  to  it,  he  found  that  large  quantities  of  his  grass-seed 
had  actually  taken  !  Now  he  might  hope  to  convert  that 
barren-looking,  and  often  glaring  rock,  into  a  beautiful 
jrrassy  hill,  and  render  that  which  was  sometimes  painful 
10 


110  THE   CRATER; 

to  the  eyes,  a  pleasure  to  look  upon.  The  young  man 
understood  the  laws  of  vegetation  well  enough  to  be  cer 
tain  thai  could  the  roots  of  grasses  once  insinuate  them- 
sehes  into  the  almost  invisible  crevices  of  the  crust  that 
covered  the  place,  they  would  of  themselves  let  in  light, 
air  and  water  enough  for  their  own  wants,  and  thus  in 
crease  the  very  fertility  on  which  they  subsisted.  He  did 
not  fail,  however,  to  aid  nature,  by  scattering  a  fresh  sup 
ply  of  guano  all  over  the  hill. 

While  Mark  was  thus  employed  at  home,  Bob  rowed  out 
to  the  r»-ef,  bringing  in  his  fish  in  such  quantities  that  it 
occurred  to  Mark  to  convert  them  also  into  manure.  A 
fresh  hal  f-acre  was  accordingly  broken  up,  within  the  cra 
ter,  the  cool  of  the  mornings  and  of  the  evenings  being 
taken  for  the  toil ;  and,  as  soon  as  a  bed  was  picked  over, 
quantiti,  -j  of  fish  were  buried  in  it,  and  left  there  to  decay. 
Nor  did  Betts  neglect  the  sea-weed  the  while.  On  several 
occasions  he  floated  large  bodies  of  it  in,  from  the  outer 
r-eefs,  which  were  all  safely  landed  and  wheeled  into  the 
crater,  \\here  a  long  pile  of  it  was  formed,  mingled  with 
loam  from  Loam  Island,  and  guano.  This  work,  however, 
gradually  ceased,  as  the  season  advanced,  and  summer 
came  in  earnest.  That  season,  however,  did  not  prove  by 
any  means  as  formidable  as  Mark  had  anticipated,  the  sea- 
breezes  keeping  the  place  cool  and  refreshed.  Our  mari- 
neis  now  missed  the  rain,  which  was  by  no  means  as  fre 
quent  a"  it  had  been,  though  it  fell  in  larger  quantities 
when  it  «lid  come.  The  stock  had  to  be  watered  for  several 
weeks,  the  power  of  the  sun  causing  all  the  water  that 
lodged  in  the  cavities  of  the  rocks  to  evaporate  almost  im 
mediately. 

During  the  time  it  was  too  warm  to  venture  out  in  the 
dingui,  »*  ;cept  for  half  an  hour  of  a  morning,  or  for  as  long 
a  period  of  an  evening,  Mark  turned  his  attention  to  the 
ship  agitin.  Seizing  suitable  moments,  each  sail  was 
loosened,  thoroughly  dried,  unbent,  and  got  below.  An 
awning  was  got  out,  and  spread,  and  the  decks  were  wet 
down,  n«orning  and  evening,  both  for  the  purposes  of 
cleanliness,  and  to  keep  them  from  cheeking.  The  hold 
was  now  entered,  and  overhauled,  for  the  first  time  since 
the  accident.  A  great  many  useful  things  were  found  in 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  Ill 

it,  and  among  other  articles  two  barrels  of  good  sharp 
vinegar,  which  Friend  Abraham  White  had  caused  to  be 
put  on  board  to  be  used  with  anything  that  could  be  pic 
kled,  as  an  anti-scorbutic.  The  onions  and  cucumbers 
both  promising  so  well,  Mark  rejoiced  at  this  discovery, 
determining  at  once  to  use  some  of  the  vinegar  on  a  part 
of  his  expected  crop  of  those  two  vegetables. 

One  day  as  Bob  was  rummaging  about  in  the  hold,  and 
Mark  was  looking  on,  that  being  the  coolest  place  on  the 
whole  reef,  the  former  got  hold  of  a  piece  of  wood,  and 
began  to  tug  at  it  to  draw  it  out  from  among  a  pile  that  lay 
in  a  dark  corner.  After  several  efforts,  the  stick  came, 
when  Mark,  struck  with  a  glimpse  he  got  of  its  form,  bade 
Bob  bring  it  under  the  light  of  the  hatchway.  The  instant 
he  got  a  good  look  at  it,  Woolston  knew  that  Bob's  '  fool 
ish,  crooked  stick,  which  was  fit  to  stow  nowhere,'  as  the 
honest  fellow  had  described  it  when  it  gave  him  so  much 
trouble,  was  neither  more  nor  less  than  one  of  the  ribs  of 
a  boat  of  larger  size  than  common. 

"  This  is  providential,  truly  !"  exclaimed  Mark.  "  Your 
crooked  stick,  Bob,  is  a  part  of  the  frame  of  the  pinnace 
of  which  you  spoke,  and  which  we  had  given  up,  as  a  thing 
not  to  be  found  on  board !" 

"  You  're  right,  Mr.  Mark,  you  're  right !"  answered  Bob 
— "  and  I  mast  have  been  oncommon  stupid  not  to  have 
thought  of  it,  when  it  came  so  hard.  And  if  there's  one 
of  the  boat's  bones  stowed  in  that  place,  there  must  be 
more  to  be  found  in  the  same  latitude." 

This  was  true  enough.  After  working  in  that  dark 
corner  of  the  hold  for  several  hours,  all  the  materials  of 
the  intended  craft  were  found  and  collected  in  the  steerage. 
Neither  Mark  nor  Betts  was  a  boat-builder,  or  a  ship 
wright  ;  but  each  had  a  certain  amount  of  knowledge  on 
the  subject,  and  each  well  knew  where  every  piece  was 
intended  to  be  put.  What  a  revolution  this  discovery 
made  in  the  feelings  of  our  young  husband  !  He  had  never 
totally  despaired  of  seeing  Bridget  again,  for  that  would 
scarce  have  comported  with  his  youth  and  sanguine  tem 
perament;  but  the  hope  had,  of  late,  become  so  very  dim, 
as  to  survive  only  as  that  feeling  will  endure  in  the  bosoms 
<if  the  youthful  and  inexperienced.  Mark  had  lived  a  long 


112  THE  CRATER; 

time  for  his  years ;  had  seen  more  and  performed  far  more 
than  usually  falls  to  persons  of  his  age,  and  he  was,  by 
character,  prudent  and  practical ;  but  it  would  have  been 
impossible  for  one  who  had  lived  as  long  and  as  well  as 
himself,  to  give  up  every  expectation  of  being  restored  to 
his  bride,  even  in  circumstances  more  discouraging  than 
those  in  which  he  was  actually  placed.  Still,  he  had  been 
slowly  accustoming  himself  to  the  idea  of  a  protracted 
separation,  and  had  never  lost  sight  of  the  expediency  of 
making  his  preparations  for  passing  his  entire  life  in  the 
solitary  place  where  he  and  Betts  had  been  cast  by  a  mys 
terious  and  unexpected  dispensation  of  a  Divine  Provi 
dence.  When  Bob,  from  time  to  time,  insisted  on  his 
account  of  the  materials  for  the  pinnace  being  in  the  ship, 
Mark  had  listened  incredulously,  unconscious  himself  how 
much  his  mind  had  been  occupied  by  Bridget  when  this 
part  of  the  cargo  had  been  taken  in,  and  unwilling  to  be 
lieve  such  an  acquisition  could  have  been  made  without 
his  knowledge.  Now  that  he  saw  it,  however,  a  tumultu 
ous  rushing  of  all  the  blood  in  his  body  towards  his  heart, 
almost  overpowered  him,  and  the  future  entirely  changed 
its  aspects.  He  did  not  doubt  an  instant,  of  the  ability  of 
Bob  and  himself  to  put  these  blessed  materials  together,  or 
of  their  success  in  navigating  the  mild  sea  around  them, 
for  any  necessary  distance,  in  a  craft  of  the  size  this  must 
turn  out  to  be.  A  bright  vista,  with  Bridget's  brighter 
countenance  at  its  termination,  glowed  before  his  imagina 
tion,  and  a  great  deal  of  wholesome  philosophy  and  Chris 
tian  submission  were  unsettled,  as  it  might  be,  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye,  by  this  all-important  discovery.  Mark 
had  never  abandoned  the  thought  of  constructing  a  little 
vessel  with  materials  torn  from  the  ship  ;  but  that  would 
nave  been  a  most  laborious,  as  well  as  a  doubtful  experiment, 
while  here  was  the  problem  solved,  with  a  certainty  and 
precision  almost  equal  to  one  in  mathematics ! 

The  agitation  and  revulsion  of  feeling  produced  in  Mark 
by  the  discovery  of  the  materials  of  the  pinnace,  were  so 
great  as  to  prevent  him  from  maturing  any  plan  for  several 
days.  During  that  time  he  could  perceive  in  himself  an 
alteration  that  amounted  almost  to  an  entire  change  of 
character.  The  vines  on  the  Summit  were  now  in  full 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  113 

leaf,  and  they  covered  broad  patches  of  the  rock  with  their 
luxuriant  vegetation,  while  the  grass  could  actually  be  see.n 
from  the  ship,  converting  the  drab-coloured  concretions 
of  the  mount  into  slopes  and  acclivities  of  verdure.  But, 
all  this  delighted  him  no  longer.  Home  and  Bridget  met 
him  even  in  the  fanciful  arid  now  thriving  beds  within  the 
crater,  where  everything  appeared  to  push  forward  with  a 
luxuriance  and  promise  of  return,  far  exceeding  what  had 
once  been  his  fondest  expectations.  He  could  see  nothing, 
anticipate  nothing,  talk  of  nothing,  think  of  nothing,  but 
these  new-found  means  of  quitting  the  Reef,  and  of  return 
ing  to  the  abodes  of  men,  and  to  the  arms  of  his  young 
wife. 

Betts  took  things  more  philosophically.  He  had  made 
up  his  mind  to  *  Robinson  Crusoe  it'  a  few  years,  and, 
though  he  had  often  expressed  a  wish  that  the  dingui  was 
of  twice  its  actual  size,  he  would  have  been  quite  as  well 
content  with  this  new  boat  could  it  be  cut  down  to  one- 
fourth  of  its  real  dimensions.  He  submitted  to  Mark's 
superior  information,  however ;  and  when  the  latter  told 
him  that  he  could  wait  no  longer  for  the  return  of  cooler 
weather,  or  for  the  heat  of  the  sun  to  become  less  intense 
before  he  began  to  set  up  the  frame  of  his  craft,  as  had 
been  the  first  intention,  Bob  acquiesced  in  the  change  of 
plan,  without  remonstrance,  bent  on  taking  things  as  they 
came,  in  humility  and  cheerfulness. 

Nevertheless,  it  was  far  easier  bravely  to  determine  in 
this  matter,  than  to  execute.  The  heat  was  now  so  intense 
for  the  greater  part  of  the  day,  that  it  would  have  far  ex 
ceeded  the  power  of  our  two  mariners  to  support  it,  on  a 
naked  rock,  and  without  shade  of  any  sort.  The  frame 
of  the  pinnace  must  be  set  up  somewhere  near  the  water, 
regular  ways  being  necessary  to  launch  her ;  and  nowhere, 
on  the  shore,  was  the  smallest  shade  to  be  found,  without 
recourse  to  artificial  means  of  procuring  it.  As  Mark's 
impatience  would  no  longer  brook  delay,  this  artificial 
shade,  therefore,  was  the  first  thing  to  be  attended  to. 

The  leeward  end  of  the  reef  was  chosen  fo    the  new 

ship-yard.     Although  this  choice  imposed  a  good  deal  of 

additional  labour  on  the  two  workmen,  by  compelling  them 

to  transport  all  the  materials  rather  more  than  a  mile,  reflec- 

10* 


114  -       THE   CRATER; 

tion  and  examination  induced  Mark  to  select  the  spot  he 
did.  The  formation  of  the  rock  was  more  favourable  there, 
he  fancie  J,  than  in  any  other  place  he  could  find;  offering 
greater  ficilities  for  launching.  This  was  one  motive; 
but  the  principal  inducement  was  connected  with  an  ap 
prehension  of  floods.  By  the  wall-like  appearance  of  the 
exte.'ior  '  ase  of  the  mount,  by  the  smoothness  of  the  sur 
face  of  tlie  Reef  in  general,  which,  while  it  had  many  in 
equalities,  wore  the  appearance  of  being  semi-polished  by 
the  washing  of  water  over  it;  and  by  the  certain  signs  that 
wern  to  I  e  found  on  most  of  the  lower  half  of  the  plain  of 
the  crater  itself,  Mark  thought  it  apparent  that  the  entire 
reef,  the  crater  excepted,  had  been  often  covered  with  the 
wat<  r  of  the  ocean,  and  that  at  no  very  distant  day.  The 
winler  months  were  usually  the  tempestuous  months  in 
that  latitude,  though  hurricanes  might  at  any  time  occur. 
Nov/,  the  winter  was  yet  an  untried  experiment  with  our 
two  '  reefers,'  as  Bob  sometimes  laughingly  called  himself 
and  Maik,  and  hurricanes  were  things  that  often  raised 
the  seas  in  their  neighbourhood  several  feet  in  an  hour  or 
two.  Should  the  water  be  actually  driven  upon  the  Reef, 
so  as  to  admit  of  a  current  to  wash  across  it,  or  the  waves 
to  roll  along  its  surface,  the  pinnace  would  be  in  the  great 
est  danger  of  being  carried  oft'  before  it  could  be  even 
launched  All  these  things  Mark  bore  in  mind,  and  he 
chose  the  spot  he  did,  with  an  eye  to  these  floods,  alto 
gether.  It  might  be  six  or  eight  months  before  they  could 
be  ready  to  get  the  pinnace  into  the  water,  and  it  now 
wanted  but  six  to  the  stormy  season.  At  the  western,  or 
leeward,  extremity  of  the  island,  the  little  craft  would  be 
under  the  lee  of  the  crater,  which  would  form  a  sort  of 
breakwater,  and  might  be  the  means  of  preventing  it  from 
being  washed  away.  Then  the  rock,  just  at  that  spot,  was 
three  or  four  feet  higher  than  at  any  other  point,  suffi 
ciently  near  the  sea  to  admit  of  launching  with  ease;  and  the 
two  advantages  united,  induced  our  young  '  reefer'  to  incur 
the  labour  of  transporting  the  materials  the  distance  named, 
in  preference  to  foregoing  them.  The  raft,  however,  was 
put  in  requisition,  and  the  entire  frame,  with  a  few  of  the 
planks  necessary  for  a  commencement,  was  carried  round 
at  ( ne  1  oad. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  115 

Previously  to  laying  the  keel  of  the  pinnace,  Mark  named 
it  the  Neshamony,  after  a  creek  that  was  nearly  opposite 
to  the  Rancocus,  another  inlet  of  the  Delaware,  that  had 
given  its  name  to  the  ship  from  the  circumstance  that 
Friend  Abraham  White  had  been  born  on  its  low  banks. 
The  means  of  averting  the  pains  and  penalties  of  working 
in  the  sun,  were  also  attended  to,  as  indeed  the  great  pre 
liminary  measure  in  this  new  enterprise.  To  this  end,  the 
raft  was  again  put  in  requisition ;  an  old  main-course  was 
got  out  of  the  sail-room,  and  lowered  upon  the  raft ;  spare 
spars  were  cut  to  the  necessary  length,  and  thrown  into 
the  water,  to  be  towed  down  in  company ;  ropes,  &,c.,  were 
provided,  and  Bob  sailed  anew  on  this  voyage.  It  was  a 
work  of  a  good  deal  of  labour  to  get  the  raft  to  windward, 
towing  having  been  resorted  to  as  the  easiest  process,  but 
a  trip  to  leeward  was  soon  made.  In  twenty  minutes  after 
this  cargo  had  left  the  ship,  it  reached  its  point  of  desti 
nation. 

The  only  time  when  our  men  could  work  at  even  their 
awning,  were  two  hours  early  in  the  morning,  arid  as  many 
after  the  sun  had  got  very  low,  or  had  absolutely  set.  Eight 
holes  had  to  be  drilled  into  the  lava,  to  a  depth  of  two  feet 
each.  Gunpowder,  in  very  small  quantities,  was  used,  or 
these  holes  could  not  have  been  made  in  a  twelvemonth. 
But  by  drilling  with  a  crowbar  a  foot  or  two  into  the  rock, 
and  charging  the  cavity  with  a  very  small  portion  of  pow 
der,  the  lava  was  cracked,  when  the  stones  rather  easily 
were  raised  by  means  of  the  picks  and  crows.  Some  idea 
may  be  formed  of  the  amount  of  labour  that  was  expended 
on  this,  the  first  step  in  the  new  task,  by  the  circumstance 
that  a  month  was  passed  in  setting  those  eight  awning-posts 
alone.  When  up,  however,  they  perfectly  answered  the 
purpose,  everything  having  been  done  in  a  thorough,  sea 
man-like  manner.  At  the  top  of  each  post,  itself  a  portion 
of  solid  spar,  a  watch-tackle  was  lashed,  by  means  of  which 
the  sail  was  bowsed  up  to  its  place.  To  prevent  the  bag 
ging  unavoidable  in  an  awning  of  that  size,  several  up 
rights  were  set  in  the  centre,  on  end,  answering  their  pur 
pose  sufficiently  without  boring  into  the  rocks. 

Bub  was  in  raptures  with  the  new  '  ship-yard.'  It  was 
98  large  as  the  mainsail  of  a  ship  of  fou  hundred  tons, 


116  THE   CRATER; 

was  complete  as  to  shade,  with  the  advantage  of  letting  the 
breeze  circulate,  and  had  a  reasonable  chance  of  escaping 
from  the  calamities  of  a  flood.  Mark,  too,  was  satisfied 
with  the  result,  and  the  very  next  day  after  this  task  was 
completed,  our  shipwrights  set  to  work  to  lay  their  keel. 
That  day  was  memorable  on  another  account.  Bob  had 
gone  to  the  Summit  in  quest  of  a  tool  left  there,  in  fitting 
up  the  boat  of  Mark,  and  while  on  the  mount,  he  ascer 
tained  the  important  fact  that  the  melons  were  beginning 
to  ripen.  He  brought  down  three  or  four  of  these  deli 
cious  fruits,  and  Mark  had  the  gratification  of  tasting  some 
of  the  bounties  of  Providence,  which  had  been  bestowed, 
as  a  reward  of  his  own  industry  and  forethought.  It  was 
necessary  to  eat  of  these  melons  in  moderation,  however ; 
but  it  was  a  great  relief  to  get  them  at  all,  after  subsisting 
for  so  long  a  time  on  salted  meats,  principally,  with  no 
other  vegetables  but  such  as  were  dry,  and  had  been  long 
in  the  ship.  It  was  not  the  melons  alone,  however,  that 
were  getting  to  be  ripe;  for,  on  examining  himself,  among 
the  vines  which  now  covered  fully  an  acre  of  the  Summit, 
Mark  found  squashes,  cucumbers,  onions,  sweet-potatoes, 
tomatoes,  string-beans,  and  two  or  three  other  vegetables, 
all  equally  fit  to  be  used.  From  that  time,  some  of  these 
plants  were  put  into  the  pot  daily,  and  certain  slight  ap 
prehensions  which  Woolston  had  begun  again  to  entertain 
on  the  subject  of  scurvy,  were  soon  dissipated.  As  for  the 
garden  within  the  crater,  which  was  much  the  most  exten 
sive  and  artistical,  it  was  somewhat  behind  that  on  the 
Summit,  having  been  later  tilled ;  but  everything,  there, 
looked  equally  promising,  and  Mark  saw  that  one  acre, 
well  worked,  would  produce  more  than  he  and  Betts  could 
consume  in  a  twelvemonth. 

It  was  an  important  day  on  the  Reef  when  the  keel  of 
the  pinnace  was  laid.  On  examining  his  materials,  Mark 
ascertained  that  the  boat-builders  had  marked  and  num 
bered  each  portion  of  the  frame,  each  plank,  and  every 
thing  else  that  belonged  to  the  pinnace,  Holes  were 
bored,  and  everything  had  been  done  in  the  boat-yard  that 
could  be  useful  to  those  who,  it  was  expected,  were  to  put 
the  work  together  in  a  distant  part  of  the  world.  This 
greatly  facilitated  our  new  boat-builders'  labours  in  the 


OR,    VULCAN7S     PEAK.  117 

why  of  skill,  besides  having  done  so  much  of  the  actual 
toil  to  their  hands.  As  soon  as  the  keel  was  laid,  Mark 
set  up  the  frame,  which  came  together  with  very  little 
trouble.  The  wailes  were  then  got  out,  and  were  fitted, 
each  piece  being  bolted  in  its  allotted  place.  As  the  work 
had  already  been  put  together,  there  was  little  or  no  dub 
bing  necessary.  Aware  that  the  parts  had  once  been  ac 
curately  fitted  to  each  other,  Mark  was  careful  not  to  dis 
turb  their  arrangement  by  an  unnecessary  use  of  the  adze, 
or  broad-axe,  experimenting  and  altering  the  positions  of 
the  timbers  and  planks ;  but,  whenever  he  met  with  any 
obstacle,  in  preference  to  cutting  and  changing  the  mate 
rials  themselves,  he  persevered  until  the  parts  came  to 
gether  as  had  been  contemplated.  By  observing  this  cau 
tion,  the  whole  frame  was  set  up,  the  wailes  were  fitted  and 
bolted,  and  the  garboard-streak  got  on  and  secured,  without 
taking  off  a  particle  of  the  wood,  though  a  week  was  ne 
cessary  to  effect  these  desired  objects. 

Our  mariners  now  measured  their  new  frame.  The 
keel  was  just  four-and-twenty  feet  long,  the  distance  be 
tween  the  knight-heads  and  the  taffrail  being  six  feet 
greater;  the  beam,  from  outside  to  outside,  was  nine  feet, 
and  the  hold  might  be  computed  at  five  feet  in  depth. 
This  gave  something  like  a  measurement  of  eleven  tons ; 
the  pinnace  having  been  intended  for  a  craft  a  trifle  smaller 
than  this.  As  a  vessel  of  eleven  tons  might  make  very 
good  weather  in  a  sea-way,  if  properly  handled,  the  result 
gave  great  satisfaction,  Mark  cheering  Bob  with  accounts 
of  crafts,  of  much  smaller  dimensions,  that  had  navigated 
the  more  stormy  seas,  with  entire  safety,  on  various  occa 
sions. 

The  planking  of  the  Neshamony  was  no  great  matter, 
being  completed  the  week  it  was  commenced.  The  caulk 
ing,  however,  gave  more  trouble,  though  Bob  had  done  a 
good  deal  of  that  sort  of  work  in  his  day.  It  took  a  fort 
night  for  the  honest  fellow  to  do  the  caulking  to  his  own 
mind,  and  before  it  was  finished  another  great  discovery 
was  made  by  rummaging  in  the  ship's  hold,  in  quest  of 
some  of  the  fastenings  which  had  not  at  first  been  found. 
A  quantity  of  old  sheet-copper,  that  had  run  its  time  on  a 
vessel's  bottom,  was  brought  to  light,  narked  "  copper  for 


118  THE   CRATER; 

the  pinnace."  Friend  Abraham  White  had  bethought  him 
of  the  worms  of  the  low  latitudes,  and  had  sent  out  enough 
of  the  refuse  copper  of  a  vessel  that  had  been  broken  up 
to  cover  the  bottom  of  this  little  craft  fairly  up  to  her  bends 
To  work,  then,  Mark  and  Bob  went  to  put  on  the  sheath 
ing-paper  and  copper  that  had  thus  bountifully  been  pro 
vided  for  them,  as  soon  as  the  seams  were  well  payed. 
This  done,  and  it  was  no  great  job,  the  paint-brush  was 
set  to  work,  and  the  hull  was  completed !  In  all,  Mark 
and  Betts  were  eight  weeks,  hard  at  work,  putting  their 
pinnace  together.  When  she  was  painted,  the  summer 
was  more  than  half  gone.  The  laying  of  the  deck  had 
given  more  trouble  than  any  other  portion  of  the  work  on 
the  boat,  and  this  because  it  was  not  a  plain,  full  deck,  or 
one  that  covered  the  whole  of  the  vessel,  but  left  small 
stern-sheets  aft,  which  was  absolutely  necessary  to  the 
comfort  and  safety  of  those  she  was  to  carry.  The  whole 
was  got  together,  however,  leaving  Mark  and  Bob  to  re 
joice  in  their  success  thus  far,  and  to  puzzle  their  heads 
about  the  means  of  getting  their  craft  into  the  water,  now 
she  was  built.  In  a  word,  it  was  far  easier  to  put  together 
a  vessel  of  ten  tons,  that  had  been  thus  ready  fitted  to  their 
hands,  than  it  was  to  launch  her. 

As  each  of  our  mariners  had  necessarily  seen  many  ves 
sels  in  their  cradles,  each  had  some  idea  of  what  it  was 
now  necessary  to  do.  Mark  had  laid  the  keel  as  near  the 
water  as  he  could  get  it,  and  by  this  precaution  had  saved 
himself  a  good  deal  of  labour.  It  was  very  easy  to  find 
materials  for  the  ways,  many  heavy  planks  still  remaining; 
but  the  difficulty  was  to  lay  them  so  that  they  would  not 
spread.  Here  the  awning-posts  were  found  of  good  ser 
vice,  plank  being  set  on  their  edges  against  them,  which, 
in  their  turn,  were  made  to  sustain  the  props  of  the  ways. 
In  order  to  save  materials  in  the  cradle,  the  ways  them 
selves  were  laid  on  blocks,  and  they  were  secured  as  well 
as  the  skill  of  our  self-formed  shipwrights  could  do  it. 
They  had  some  trouble  in  making  the  cradle,  and  had 
once  to  undo  all  they  had  done,  in  consequence  of  a  mis 
take.  At  length  Mark  was  of  opinion  they  had  taken  all 
the  necessary  precautions,  and  told  Betts  that  he  thought 
they  might  venture  to  attempt  launching  the  next  day. 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  119 

But  Bob  made  a  suggestion  which  changed  this  plan,  and 
caused  a  delay  that  was  attended  with  very  serious  conse 
quences. 

The  weather  had  become  cloudy,  and  a  little  menacing, 
for  the  last  few  days,  and  Bob  proposed  that  they  should 
lower  the  awning,  get  up  shears  on  the  rock,  ami  step  the 
mast  of  the  pinnace  before  they  launched  her,  as  a  means 
of  saving  some  labour.  The  spar  was  not  verj  heavy,  it 
was  true,  and  it  might  be  stepped  by  crossing  a  couple  of 
the  oars  in  the  boat  itself;  but  a  couple  of  light  spars-— 
top-gallant  studding-sail  booms  for  instance — would  enable 
them  to  do  it  much  more  readily,  before*the  cracl  was  put 
into  the  water,  than  it  could  be  done  afterwards.  Mark 
listened  to  the  suggestion,  and  acquiesced.  The  awning 
was  consequently  lowered,  and  got  out  of  the  vay.  To 
prevent  the  hogs  from  tearing  the  sail,  it  was  placed  on 
two  of  the  wheelbarrows  and  wheeled  up  into  the  crater, 
whither  those  animals  had  never  yet  found  their  way. 
Then  the  shears  were  got  up,  and  the  mast  w  .3  stepped 
and  rigged ;  the  boat's  sails  were  found  and  bent.  Mark 
now  thought  enough  had  been  done,  and  that,  the  next 
day,  they  might  undertake  the  launch.  But  another  sug 
gestion  of  Bob's  delayed  the  proceedings. 

The  weather  still  continued  clouded  and  menacing. 
Betts  was  of  opinion,  therefore,  that  it  might  l»e  well  to 
stow  the  provisions  and  water  they  intended  to  'ise  in  the 
pinnace,  while  she  was  on  the  stocks,  as  they  could  work 
round  her  so  much  the  more  easily  then  than  afterwards. 
Accordingly,  the  breakers  were  got  out,  on  board  the  ship, 
and  filled  with  fresh  water.  They  were  then  s  iick  into 
the  raft.  A  barrel  of  beef,  and  one  of  pork  followed,  with 
a  quantity  of  bread.  At  two  trips  the  raft  earned  all  the 
provisions  and  stores  that  were  wanted,  and  the  caigoes 
were  landed,  rolled  up  to  the  side  of  the  pinnace,  hoisted 
on  board  of  her,  by  means  of  the  throat-hallianl,  and  pro 
perly  stowed.  Two  grapnels,  or  rather  one  grapnel,  and 
a  small  kedge,  were  found  among  the  pinnace's  materials, 
everything  belonging  to  her  having  been  stowed  in  the 
same  part  of  the  ship.  These,  too,  were  carried  round  to 
the  ship-yard,  got  on  board,  and  their  hawsers  bunt.  In  a 
word,  every  preparation  was  made  that  might  be  necessary 


120  THE  CRATER; 

to  make  sail  on  the  pinnace,  and  to  proceed  to  sea  in  her, 
at  once. 

It  was  rather  late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  third  clouded 
day,  that  Betts  himself  admitted  no  more  could  be  done  to 
the  Neshamony,  previously  to  putting  her  into  the  water 
When  our  two  mariners  ceased  the  business  of  the  day, 
therefore,  it  was  with  the  understanding  that  they  would 
turn  out  early  in  the  morning,  wedge  up,  and  launch.  An 
hour  of  daylight  remaining,  Mark  went  up  to  the  Summit 
to  select  a  few  melons,  and  to  take  a  look  at  the  state  of 
the  plantations  and  gardens.  Before  ascending  the  hill, 
the  young  man  walked  through  his  garden  in  the  crater, 
where  everything  was  flourishing  and  doing  well.  Many 
of  the  vegetables  were  by  this  time  fit  to  eat,  and  there 
was  every  prospect  of  there  being  a  sufficient  quantity 
raised  to  meet  the  wants  of  two  or  three  persons  for  a  long 
period  ahead.  The  sight  of  these  fruits  of  his  toil,  and 
the  luxuriance  of  the  different  plants,  caused  a  momentary 
feeling  of  regret  in  Mark  at  the  thought  of  being  about  to 
quit  the  place  for  ever.  He  even  fancied  he  should  have 
a  certain  pleasure  in  returning  to  the  Reef;  and  once  a 
faint  outline  of  a  plan  came  over  his  mind,  in  which  he 
fancied  that  he  might  bring  Bridget  to  this  place,  and  pass 
the  rest  of  his  life  with  her,  in  the  midst  of  its  peace  and 
tranquillity.  This  was  but  a  passing  thought,  however, 
and  was  soon  forgotten  in  the  pictures  that  crowded  on 
his  mind,  in  connection  with  the  great  anticipated  event  of 
the  next  day. 

While  strolling  about  the  little  walks  of  his  garden,  the 
appearance  of  verdure  along  the  edge  of  the  crater,  or  imme 
diately  beneath  the  cliff,  caught  Mark's  eye.  Going  hastily 
to  the  spot,  he  found  that  there  was  a  long  row  of  plants  of 
a  new  sort,  not  only  appearing  above  the  ground,  but  already 
in  leaf,  and  rising  several  inches  in  height.  These  were 
the  results  of  the  seeds  of  the  oranges,  lemons,  limes,  shad 
docks,  figs,  and  other  fruits  of  the  tropics,  that  he  had 
planted  there  as  an  experiment,  and  forgotten.  While  his 
mind  was  occupied  with  other  things,  these  seeds  had  sent 
forth  their  shoots,  and  the  several  trees  were  growing  with 
the  rapidity  and  luxuriance  that  distinguish  vegetation 
within  the  tropics.  As  Mark's  imagination  pictured  what 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  121 

might  be  the  effects  of  cultivation  and  care  on  that  singular 
spot,  a  sigh  of  regret  mingled  with  his  hopes  for  the  future, 
as  he  recollected  he  was  so  soon  to  abandon  the  place  for 
ever ;  while  on  the  Summit,  too,  this  feeling  of  regret  was 
increased,  rather  than  diminished.  So  much  of  the  grass- 
seed  had  taken,  and  the  roots  had  already  so  far  extended, 
that  acres  were  beginning  to  look  verdant  and  smiling. 
Two  or  three  months  had  brought  everything  forward  pro 
digiously,  and  the  frequency  of  the  rains  in  showers,  added 
to  the  genial  warmth  of  the  sun,  gave  to  vegetation  a  quick 
ness  and  force  that  surprised,  as  much  as  it  delighted  our 
young  man. 

That  night  Mark  and  Betts  both  slept  in  the  ship.  They 
had  a  fancy  it  might  be  the  last  in  which  they  could  ever 
have  any  chance  of  doing  so,  and  attachment  to  the  vessel 
induced  both  to  return  to  their  old  berths;  for  latterly  they 
had  slept  in  hammocks,  swung  beneath  the  ship-yard  awn 
ing,  in  order  to  be  near  their  work.  Mark  was  awoke  at 
a  very  early  hour,  by  the  howling  of  a  gale  among  the  rig 
ging  and  spars  of  the  Rancocus,  sounds  that  he  had  not 
heard  for  many  a  day,  and  which,  at  first,  were  actually 
pleasant  to  his  ears.  Throwing  on  his  clothes,  and  going 
out  on  the  quarter-deck,  he  found  that  a  tempest  was  upon 
them.  The  storm  far  exceeded  anything  that  he  had  ever 
before  witnessed  in  the  Pacific.  The  ocean  was  violently 
agitated,  and  the  rollers  came  in  over  the  reef,  to  wind 
ward,  with  a  force  and  majesty  that  seemed  to  disregard 
the  presence  of  the  rocks.  It  was  just  light,  and  Mark 
called  Bob,  in  alarm.  The  aspect  of  things  was  really 
serious,  and,  at  first,  our  mariners  had  great  apprehensions 
for  the  safety  of  the  ship.  It  was  true,  the  sea-wall  resisted 
every  shock  of  the  rollers  that  reached  it,  but  even  the 
billows  after  they  were  broken  by  this  obstacle,  came  down 
upon  the  vessel  with  a  violence  that  brought  a  powerful 
strain  on  every  rope-yarn  in  the  sheet-cable.  Fortunately, 
the  ground-tackle,  on  which  the  safety  of  the  vessel  de 
pended,  was  of  the  very  best  quality,  and  the  anchor  was 
known  to  have  an  excellent  hold.  Then,  the  preservation 
of  the  ship  was  no  longer  a  motive  of  the  first  considera 
tion  with  them ;  that  of  the  pinnace  being  the  thing  now 
most  to  be  regarded.  It  might  grieve  them  both  to  see 


122  THE  CRATER; 

the  Rancocus  thrown  upon  the  rocks,  and  broken  up;  but 
of  far  greater  account  was  it  to  their  future  prospects  that 
the  Neshamony  should  not  be  injured.  Nor  were  the  signs 
of  the  danger  that  menaced  the  boat  to  be  disregarded. 
The  water  of  the  ocean  appeared  to  be  piling  in  among 
these  reefs,  the  rocks  of  which  resisted  its  passage  to  lee 
ward,  and  already  was  washing  up  on  the  surface  of  the 
Reef,  in  places,  threatening  them  with  a  general  inunda 
tion.  It  was  necessary  to  look  after  the  security  of  various 
articles  that  were  scattered  about  on  the  outer  plain,  and 
our  mariners  went  ashore  to  do  so. 

Although  intending  so  soon  to  abandon  the  Reef  alto 
gether,  a  sense  of  caution  induced  Mark  to  take  every 
thing  he  could  within  the  crater.  All  the  lower  portions 
of  the  outer  plain  were  already  covered  with  water,  and 
those  sagacious  creatures,  the  hogs,  showed  by  their  snuff 
ing  and  disturbed  manner  of  running  about,  that  they  had 
internal  as  well  as  external  warnings  of  danger.  Mark 
pulled  aside  the  curtain,  and  let  all  the  animals  into  the 
crater.  Poor  Kitty  was  delighted  to  get  on  the  Summit, 
whither  she  soon  found  her  way,  by  ascending  the  steps 
commonly  used  by  her  masters.  Fortunately  for  the  plants, 
the  grass  was  in  too  great  abundance,  and  too  grateful  to 
her,  not  to  be  her  choice  in  preference  to  any  other  food. 
As  for  the  pigs,  they  got  at  work  in  a  pile  of  sea-weed,  and 
overlooked  the  garden,  which  was  at  some  distance,  until 
fairly  glutted,  and  ready  to  lie  down. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  tempest  increased  in  violence,  the 
sea  continued  to  pile  among  the  rocks,  and  the  water  ac 
tually  covered  the  whole  of  the  outer  plain  of  the  Reef 
Now  it  was  that  Mark  comprehended  how  the  base  of  the 
crater  had  been  worn  by  water,  the  waves  washing  past  it 
with  tremendous  violence.  There  was  actually  a  strong 
current  running  over  the  whole  of  the  reef,  without  the 
crater;  the  water  rushing  to  leeward,  as  if  glad  to  get  past 
the  obstacle  of  the  island  on  any  terms,  in  order  to  hasten 
away  before  the  tempest.  Mark  was  fully  half  an  hour 
engaged  in  looking  to  his  marquee  and  its  contents,  all  of 
which  were  exposed,  more  or  less,  to  the  power  of  the 
gale.  After  securing  his  books,  furniture,  &c.,  and  seeing 
that  the  stays  of  the  marquee  itself  were  likely  to  hold  out, 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  123 

he  cast  an  eye  to  the  ship,  which  was  on  that  side  of  the 
island,  also.  The  staunch  old  'Cocus,  as  Bob  called  her, 
was  rising  and  falling  with  the  waves  that  now  disturbed 
her  usually  placid  basin;  but,  as  yet,  her  cable  and  anchor 
held  her,  and  no  harm  was  done.  Fortunately,  our  mari 
ners,  when  they  unbent  the  sails,  had  sent  down  all  the 
upper  and  lighter  spars,  and  had  lowered  the  fore  and 
main  yards  on  the  gunwale,  measures  of  precaution  that 
greatly  lessened  the  strain  on  her  ground-tackle.  The 
top-gallant-masts  had  also  been  lowered,  and  the  vessel 
was  what  seamen  usually  term  '  snug.'  Mark  would  have 
been  very,  very  sorry  to  see  her  lost,  even  though  he  did 
expect  to  have  very  little  more  use  out  of  her ;  for  he  loved 
the  craft  from  habit. 

After  taking  this  look  at  the  ship,  our  mate  passed  round 
the  Summit,  having  two  or  three  tumbles  on  his  way  in 
consequence  of  puffs  of  wind,  until  he  reached  the  point 
over  the  gate-way,  which  was  that  nearest  to  the  ship-yard. 
It  now  occurred  to  hirn  that  possibly  it  might  become  ne 
cessary  to  look  a  little  to  the  security  of  the  Neshamony, 
for  by  this  time  the  water  on  the  reef  was  two  or  three  feet 
deep.  To  his  surprise,  on  looking  round  for  Bob,  whom 
he  thought  to  be  at  work  securing  property  near  the  gate 
way,  he  ascertained  that  the  honest  fellow  had  waded  down 
to  the  ship-yard,  and  clambered  on  board  the  pinnace,  with 
a  view  to  take  care  of  her.  The  distance  between  the 
point  where  Mark  now  stood  and  the  Neshamony  exceeded 
half  a  mile,  and  communication  with  the  voice  would  have 
been  next  to  impossible,  had  the  wind  not  blown  as  it  did. 
With  the  roaring  of  the  seas,  and  the  howling  of  the  gale, 
it  was  of  course  entirely  out  of  the  question.  Mark,  how 
ever,  could  see  his  friend,  and  see  that  he  was  gesticulating, 
in  the  most  earnest  manner,  for  himself  to  join  him.  Then 
it  was  he  first  perceived  that  the  pinnace  was  in  motion, 
seeming  to  move  on  her  ways.  Presently  the  blockings 
were  washed  from  under  her,  and  the  boat  went  astern 
half  her  length  at  a  single  surge.  Mark  made  a  bo  ind 
down  the  hill,  intending  to  throw  himself  into  the  raging 
surf,  and  to  swim  off  to  the  aid  of  Betts ;  but,  pausing  an 
instant  to  choose  a  spot  at  which  to  get  down  the  steep, 
he  looked  towards  the  ship-yard,  and  saw  the  pinnace 
lifted  on  a  sea,  and  washed  fairly  clear  of  the  land ! 


£24          THE  CRATER; 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"Man 's  rich  with  little,  were  his  judgments  true ; 
Nature  is  frugal,  and  her  wants  are  few  ; 
These  few  wants  answered  bring  sincere  delights, 
But  fools  create  themselves  new  appetites." 

YOUJTGK 

IT  would  have  been  madness  in  Mark  to  pursue  his  in 
tention.  A  boat,  or  craft  of  any  sort,  once  adrift  in  such 
a  gale,  could  not  have  been  overtaken  by  even  one  of  tnose 
islanders  who  are  known  to  pass  half  their  lives  in  the 
water ;  and  the  young  man  sunk  down  on  the  rock,  almost 
gasping  for  breath  in  the  intensity  of  his  distress.  He  felt 
more  for  Bob  than  he  did  for  himself,  for  escape  with  life 
appeared  to  him  to  be  a  forlorn  hope  for  his  friend.  Never 
theless,  the  sturdy  old  sea-dog  who  was  cast  adrift,  amid 
the  raging  of  the  elements,  comported  himself  in  a  way  to 
do  credit  to  his  training.  There  was  nothing  like  despair 
in  his  manner  of  proceeding;  but  so  coolly  and  intelli 
gently  did  he  set  about  taking  care  of  his  craft,  that  Mark 
soon  found  himself  a  curious  and  interested  observer  of  all 
he  did,  feeling  quite  as  much  of  admiration  for  Bob's  stea 
diness  and  skill,  as  concern  for  his  danger. 

Betts  knew  too  well  the  uselessness  of  throwing  over  his 
kedge  to  attempt  anchoring.  Nor  was  it  safe  to  keep  the 
boat  in  the  trough  of  the  sea,  his  wisest  course  being  to 
run  before  the  gale  until  he  was  clear  of  the  rocks,  when 
he  might  endeavour  to  lie-to,  if  his  craft  would  bear  it.  In 
driving  off  the  Reef  the  Neshamony  had  gone  stern  fore 
most,  almost  as  a  matter  of  course,  vessels  usually  being 
laid  down  with  their  bows  towards  the  land.  No  sooner 
did  the  honest  old  salt  find  he  was  fairly  adrift,  therefore, 
than  he  jumped  into  the  stern-sheets  and  put  the  helm 
down.  With  stern-way  on  her,  this  caused  the  bows  of 
the  craft  to  fall  off;  and,  as  she  came  broadside  to  the 
gale,  Mark  thought  she  would  fall  over,  also.  Some  idea 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  125 

could  be  formed  of  the  power  of  the  wind,  in  the  fact  that 
this  sloop-rigged  craft,  without  a  rag  of  sail  set,  and  with 
scarce  any  hamper  aloft,  no  sooner  caught  the  currents  of 
air  abeam,  than  she  lay  down  to  it,  as  one  commonly  sees 
/such  craft  do  under  their  canvas  in  stiff  breezes. 

It  was  a  proof  that  the  Neshamony  was  well  modelled, 
that  she  began  to  draw  ahead  as  soon  as  the  wind  took  her 
fairly  on  her  broadside,  when  Betts  shifted  the  helm,  and 
the  pinnace  fell  slowly  off.  When  she  had  got  nearly  be 
fore  the  wind,  she  came  up  and  rolled  to-windward  like  a 
ship,  and  Mark  scarce  breathed  as  he  saw  her  plunging 
down  upon  the  reefs,  like  a  frantic  steed  that  knows  not 
whither  he  is  rushing  in  his  terror.  From  the  elevated 
position  he  occupied,  Mark  could  see  the  ocean  as  far  as 
the  spray,  which  filled  the  atmosphere,  would  allow  of  any 
thing  being  seen  at  all.  Places  which  were  usually  white 
with  the  foam  of  breakers,  could  not  now  be  distinguished 
from  any  of  the  raging  cauldron  around  them,  and  it  was 
evident  that  Bob  must  run  at  hazard.  Twenty  times  did 
Mark  expect  to  see  the  pinnace  disappear  in  the  foaming 
waves,  as  it  drove  furiously  onward ;  but,  in  each  instance, 
the  light  and  buoyant  boat  came  up  from  cavities  where 
our  young  man  fancied  it  must  be  dashed  to  pieces,  scud 
ding  away  to  leeward  like  the  sea-fowl  that  makes  its  flight 
with  wings  nearly  dipping.  Mark  now  began  to  hope 
that  his  friend  might  pass  over  the  many  reefs  that  lay  in 
his  track,  and  gain  the  open  water  to  leeward.  The  rise 
in  the  ocean  favoured  such  an  expectation,  and  no  doubt 
was  the  reason  why  the  Neshamony  was  not  dashed  to 
pieces  within  the  first  five  minutes  after  she  was  washed 
off  her  ways.  Once  to  leeward  of  the  vast  shoals  that  sur 
rounded  the  crater,  there  was  the  probability  of  Bob's 
finding  smoother  water,  and  the  chance  of  his  riding  out 
the  tempest  by  bringing  his  little  sloop  up  head  to  sea. 
The  water  through  which  the  boat  was  then  running  was 
more  like  a  cauldron,  bubbling  and  boiling  under  some 
intense  heat  produced  by  subterranean  fires,  than  the  regu 
lar,  rolling  billows  of  the  ocean  when  piled  up  by  gales. 
Under  the  lee  of  the  shoals  this  cauldron  would  disappear, 
while  the  mountain  waves  of  the  open  ocean  could  not  rise 
until  a  certain  distance  from  the  shallow  water  enabled 
11* 


126  THE   CRATER; 

them  to  '  get  up,'  as  sailors  express  it.  Mark  saw  the 
Neshamony  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after  she  was 
adrift,  though  long  before  the  expiration  of  even  that  brief 
period  she  was  invisible  for  many  moments  at  a  time,  in 
consequence  of  the  distance,  her  want  of  sail,  her  lowness 
in  the  water,  and  the  troubled  state  of  the  element  through 
which  she  was  driving.  The  last  look  he  got  of  her  was 
at  an  instant  when  the  spray  was  filling  the  atmosphere 
like  a  passing  cloud ;  when  it  had  driven  away,  the  boat 
could  no  longer  be  seen  ! 

Here  was  a  sudden  and  a  most  unexpected  change  for 
the  worse  in  the  situation  of  Mark  Woolston !  Not  only 
had  he  lost  the  means  of  getting  off  the  island,  but  he  had 
lost  his  friend  and  companion.  It  was  true,  Bob  was  a 
rough  and  an  uncultivated  associate;  but  he  was  honest  as 
human  frailty  could  leave  a  human  being,  true  as  steel  in 
his  attachments,  strong  in  body,  and  of  great  professional 
skill.  So  great,  indeed,  was  the  last,  that  our  young  man 
was  not  without  the  hope  he  would  be  able  to  keep  under 
the  lee  of  the  shoals  until  the  gale  broke,  and  then  beat  up 
through  them,  and  still  come  to  his  rescue.  There  was 
one  point,  in  particular,  on  which  Mark  felt  Unusual  con 
cern.  Bob  knew  nothing  whatever  of  navigation.  It  was 
impossible  to  teach  him  anything  on  that  subject.  He 
knew  the  points  of  the  compass,  but  had  no  notion  of  the 
variations,  of  latitude  or  longitude,  or  of  anything  belong 
ing  to  the  purely  mathematical  part  of  the  business.  Twenty 
times  had  he  asked  Mark  to  give  him  the  latitude  and 
longitude  of  the  crater;  twenty  times  had  he  been  told  what 
they  were,  and  just  as  often  had  he  forgotten  them.  When 
questioned  by  his  young  friend,  twenty-four  hours  after  a 
lesson  of  this  sort,  if  he  remembered  the  figures  at  all,  he 
was  apt  to  give  the  latitude  for  the  longitude,  or  the  longi 
tude  for  the  latitude,  the  degrees  for  the  minutes,  or  the 
minutes  for  the  degrees.  Ordinarily,  however,  he  forgot 
all  about  the  numbers  themselves.  Mark  had  in  vain  en 
deavoured  to  impress  on  his  mind  the  single  fact  that  any 
number  which  exceeded  ninety  must  necessarily  refer  to 
longitude,  and  not  to  latitude;  for  Bob  could  not  be  made 
to  remember  even  this  simple  distinction.  He  was  just  as 
likely  to  believe  the  Reef  lay  in  the  hundred  and  twentieth 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  127 

degree  of  latitude,  as  he  was  to  fancy  it  lay  in  the  twen 
tieth.  With  such  a  head,  therefore,  it  was  but  little  to  be 
expected  Bob  could  give  the  information  to  others  neces 
sary  to  find  the  reef,  even  in  the  almost  hopeless  event  of 
his  ever  being  placed  in  circumstances  to  do  so.  Still, 
while  so  completely  ignorant  of  mathematics  and  arithme 
tic,  in  all  their  details,  few  mariners  could  find  their  way 
better  than  Bob  Betts  by  the  simple  signs  of  the  ocean. 
He  understood  the  compass  perfectly,  the  variations  ex- 
cepted ;  and  his  eye  was  as  true  as  that  of  the  most  expe 
rienced  artist  could  be,  when  it  became  necessary  to  judge 
of  the  colour  of  the  water.  On  many  occasions  had  Mark 
known  him  intimate  that  the  ship  was  in  a  current,  and 
had  a  weatherly  or  a  lee  set,  when  the  fact  had  escaped  not 
only  the  officers,  but  the  manufacturers  of  the  charts.  He 
judged  by  ripples,  and  sea-weed,  and  the  other  familiar 
signs  of  the  seas,  and  these  seldom  failed  him.  While, 
therefore,  there  was  not  a  seaman  living  less  likely  to  find 
the  Reef  again,  when  driven  off  from  its  vicinity,  by  means 
of  observations  and  the  charts,  there  was  not  a  seaman 
living  more  likely  to  find  it,  by  resorting  to  the  other  helps 
of  the  navigator.  On  this  last  peculiarity  Mark  hung  all 
his  hopes  of  seeing  his  friend  again,  when  the  gale  should 
abate. 

Since  the  moment  when  all  the  charge  of  the  ship  fell 
upon  his  shoulders,  by  the  loss  of  Captain  Crutchely,  Mark 
had  never  felt  so  desolate,  as  when  he  lost  sight  of  Bob  and 
the  Neshamony.  Then,  indeed,  did  he  truly  feel  himself 
to  be  alone,  with  none  between  him  and  his  God  with 
whom  to  commune.  It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that 
one  so  much  disposed  to  cherish  his  intercourse  with  the 
Divine  Spirit,  knelt  on  the  naked  rock  and  prayed.  After 
this  act  of  duty  and  devotion,  the  young  man  arose,  and 
endeavoured  to  turn  his  attention  to  the  state  of  things 
around  him. 

The  gale  still  continued  with  unabated  fury.  Each  in 
stant  the  water  rose  higher  and  higher  on  the  Reef,  until 
it  began  to  enter  within  the  crater,  by  means  of  the  gutters 
that  had  been  worn  in  the  lava,  covering  two  or  three 
acres  of  the  lower  part  of  its  plain.  As  for  the  Rancocus, 
though  occasionally  pitching  more  heavily  than  our  young 


128  THE  CRATER; 

man  could  have  believed  possible  behind  the  sea-wall,  her 
anchor  still  held,  and  no  harm  had  yet  come  to  her.  Find 
ing  it  impossible  to  do  any  more,  Mark  descended  into  the 
crater,  where  it  was  a  perfect  lull,  though  the  wind  fairly 
howled  on  every  side,  and  got  into  one  of  the  South  Ame 
rican  hammocks,  of  which  there  had  been  two  or  three  in 
the  ship,  and  of  which  he  had  caused  one  to  be  suspended 
beneath  the  sort  of  tent  he  and  poor  Bob  had  erected  near 
the  garden.  Here  Mark  remained  all  the  rest  of  that  day, 
and  during  the  whole  of  the  succeeding  night.  But  for 
what  he  had  himself  previously  seen,  the  roar  of  the  ocean 
on  the  other  side  of  his  rocky  shelter,  and  the  scuffling  of 
the  winds  about  the  Summit,  he  might  not  have  been  made 
conscious  of  the  violence  of  the  tempest  that  was  raging 
so  near  him.  Once  and  awhile,  however,  a  puff  of  air 
would  pass  over  him ;  but,  on  the  whole,  he  was  little  af 
fected  by  the  storm,  until  near  morning,  when  it  rained 
violently.  Fortunately,  Mark  had  taken  the  precaution  to 
give  a  low  ridge  to  all  his  awnings  and  tent-coverings, 
which  turned  the  water  perfectly.  When,  therefore,  he 
heard  the  pattering  of  the  drops  on  the  canvas,  he  did  not 
rise,  but  remained  in  his  hammock  until  the  day  returned. 
Previously  to  that  moment,  however,  he  dropped  into  a 
deep  sleep,  in  which  he  lay  several  hours. 

When  consciousness  returned  to  Mark,  he  lay  half  a 
minute  trying  to  recall  the  past.  Then  he  listened  for  the 
sounds  of  the  tempest.  All  was  still  without,  and,  rising, 
he  found  that  the  sun  was  shining,  and  that  a  perfect  calm 
reigned  in  the  outer  world.  Water  was  lying  in  spots,  in 
holes  on  the  surface  of  the  crater,  where  the  pigs  were 
drinking  and  the  ducks  bathing.  Kitty  stood  in  sight,  on 
the  topmost  knoll  of  the  Summit,  cropping  the  young  sweet 
grass  that  had  so  lately  been  refreshed  by  rain,  disliking 
it  none  the  less,  probably,  from  the  circumstance  that  a 
few  particles  of  salt  were  to  be  found  among  it,  the  deposit 
of  the  spray.  The  garden  looked  smiling,  the  plants  re 
freshed,  and  nothing  as  yet  touched  in  it,  by  the  visiters 
who  had  necessarily  been  introduced. 

Our  young  man  washed  himself  in  one  of  the  pools,  and 
then  crossed  the  plain  to  drive  out  the  pigs  and  poultry, 
the  necessity  of  husbanding  his  stores  pressing  even  pain- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  129 

fully  on  his  mind.  As  he  approached  the  gate-way,  he 
saw  that  the  sea  had  retired ;  and,  certain  that  the  animals 
would  take  care  of  themselves,  he  drove  them  through  the 
hole,  and  dropped  the  sail  before  it.  Then  he  sought  one 
of  the  ascents,  and  was  soon  on  the  top  of  the  hill.  The 
trades  had  returned,  but  scarce  blew  in  zephyrs ;  the  sea 
was  cairn  ;  the  points  in  the  reefs  were  easily  to  be  seen ; 
the  ship  was  at  rest  and  seemingly  uninjured,  and  the 
whole  view  was  one  of  the  sweetest  tranquillity  and  secu 
rity.  Already  had  the  pent  and  piled  waters  diffused 
themselves,  leaving  the  Reef  as  before,  with  the  exception 
that  those  cavities  which  contained  rain-water,  during  most 
of  the  year,  now  contained  that  which  Was  not  quite  so 
palatable.  This  was  a  great  temporary  inconvenience, 
though  the  heavy  showers  of  the  past  night  had  done  a 
good  deal  towards  sweetening  the  face  of  the  rock,  and 
had  reduced  most  of  the  pools  to  a  liquid  that  was  brackish 
rather  than  salt.  A  great  many  fish  lay  scattered  about, 
on  the  island,  and  Mark  hastened  down  to  examine  their 
qualities. 

The  pigs  and  poultry  were  already  at  work  on  the  game 
that  was  so  liberally  thrown  in  their  way,  and  Mark  felt 
indebted  to  these  scavengers  for  aiding  him  in  what  he 
perceived  was  now  a  task  indispensable  to  his  comfort. 
After  going  to  the  ship,  and  breaking  his  fast,  he  returned 
to  the  crater,  obtained  a  wheelbarrow,  and  set  to  work  in 
earnest  to  collect  the  fish,  which  a  very  few  hours'  expo 
sure  to  the  sun  of  that  climate  would  render  so  offensive 
as  to  make  the  island  next  to  intolerable.  Never  in  his 
life  did  our  young  friend  work  harder  than  he  did  all  that 
morning.  Each  load  of  fish,  as  it  was  wheeled  into  the 
crater,  was  thrown  into  a  trench  already  prepared  for  that 
purpose,  and  the  ashes  were  hauled  over  it,  by  means  of 
the  hoe.  Feeling  the  necessity  of  occupation  to  lessen  his 
sorrow,  as  well  as  that  of  getting  rid  of  pestilence,  which 
he  seriously  apprehended  from  this  inroad  of  animal  sub 
stances,  Mark  toiled  two  whole  days  at  this  work,  until 
fairly  driven  from  it  by  the  intolerable  effluvium  which 
arose,  notwithstanding  all  he  had  done,  on  every  side  of 
the  island.  It  is  impossible  to  say  what  would  have  been 
the  consequences  had  not  the  birds  come,  in  thousands,  to 


130  THE  CRATER; 

his  relief.  They  made  quick  work  of  it,  clearing  off  the 
fish  in  numbers  that  would  be  nearly  incredible.  As  it 
was,  however,  our  young  hermit  was  driven  into  the  ship, 
where  he  passed  a  whole  week,  the  steadiness  of  the  trades 
driving  the  disagreeable  odours  to  leeward.  At  the  end 
of  that  time  he  ventured  ashore,  where  he  found  it  possible 
to  remain,  though  the  Reef  did  not  get  purified  for  more 
than  a  month.  Finding  a  great  many  fish  still  remaining 
that  neither  hog  nor  bird  would  touch,  Mark  made  a  couple 
of  voyages  to  Loam  Island,  whence  he  brought  two  car 
goes  of  the  deposit,  and  landed  at  the  usual  place.  This 
he  wheeled  about  the  Reef,  throwing  two  or  three  shovels 
full  on  each  offensive  creature,  thus  getting  rid  of  the  efflu 
vium  and  preparing  a  considerable  store  of  excellent  ma 
nure  for  his  future  husbandry.  It  may  be  as  well  said 
here,  that,  at  odd  times,  he  threw  these  little  deposits  into 
large  heaps,  and  subsequently  wheeled  them  into  the  crater, 
where  they  were  mixed  with  the  principal  pile  of  compost 
that  had  now  been,  for  months,  collecting  there. 

It  is  a  proof  of  the  waywardness  of  human  nature  that 
we  bear  great  misfortunes  better  than  small  ones.  So  it 
proved  with  Mark,  on  this  occasion;  for,  much  as  he  really 
regarded  Bob,  and  serious  as  was  the  loss  of  his  friend  to 
himself,  the  effects  of  the  inundation  occupied  his  thoughts, 
and  disturbed  him  more,  just  at  that  time,  than  the  disap 
pearance  of  the  Neshamony.  Nevertheless,  our  young 
man  had  not  forgotten  to  look  out  for  the  missing  boat,  in 
readiness  to  hail  its  return  with  joy.  He  passed  much  of 
the  week  he  was  shut  up  in  the  ship  in  her  topmast-cross- 
trees,  vainly  examining  the  sea  to  leeward,  in  the  hope  of 
catching  a  distant  view  of  the  pinnace  endeavouring  to 
bear  up  through  the  reefs.  Several  times  he  actually  fan 
cied  he  saw  her ;  but  it  always  turned  out  to  be  the  wing 
of  some  gull,  or  the  cap  of  a  distant  breaker.  It  was  when 
Mark  had  come  ashore  again,  and  commenced  the  toil  of 
covering  the  decayed  fish,  and  of  gathering  them  into  piles, 
that  these  smaller  matters  supplanted  the  deep  griefs  of  his 
solitude. 

One  of  the  annoyances  to  which  our  solitary  man  found 
himself  most  subject,  was  the  glare  produced  by  a  burning 
sun  on  rocks  and  ashes  of  the  drab  colour  of  the  crater 


OR,    VULCAN   S    PEAK.  131 

The  spots  of  verdure  that  he  had  succeeded  in  producing 
on  the  Summit,  not  only  relieved  and  refreshed  his  eyes, 
but  they  were  truly  delightful  as  aids  to  the  view,  as  well 
as  grateful  to  Kitty,  which  poor  creature  had,  by  this  time, 
cropped  them  down  to  a  pretty  short  herbage.  This  Mark 
knew,  however,  was  an  advantage  to  the  grass,  making  it 
finer,  and  causing  it  to  thicken  at  the  roots.  The  success 
of  this  experiment,  the  annoyance  to  his  eyes,  and  a  fever 
ish  desire  to  be  doing,  which  succeeded  the  disappearance 
of  Belts,  set  Mark  upon  the  project  of  sowing  grass-seed 
over  as  much  of  the  plain  of  the  crater  as  he  thought  he 
should  not  have  occasion  to  use  for  the  purposes  of  tillage. 
To  work  he  went  then,  scattering  the  seed  in  as  much 
profusion  as  the  quantity  to  be  found  in  the  ship  would 
justify.  Friend  Abraham  White  had  provided  two  barrels 
of  the  seed,  and  this  went  a  good  way.  While  thus  em 
ployed  a  heavy  shower  fell,  and  thinking  the  rain  a  most 
favourable  time  to  commit  his  grass-seeds  to  the  earth, 
Mark  worked  through  the  whole  of  it,  or  for  several  hours, 
perspiring  with  the  warmth  and  exercise. 

This  done,  a  look  at  the  garden,  with  a  free  use  of  the 
hoe,  was  the  next  thing  undertaken.  That  night  Mark 
slept  in  his  hammock,  under  the  crater-awning,  and  when 
he  awoke  in  the  morning  it  was  to  experience  a  weight 
like  that  of  lead  in  his  forehead,  a  raging  thirst,  and  a 
burning  fever.  Now  it  was  that  our  poor  solitary  hermit 
felt  the  magnitude  of  his  imprudence  and  the  weight  of 
the  evils  of  his  peculiar  situation.  That  he  was  about  to 
be  seriously  ill  he  knew,  and  it  behoved  him  to  improve 
the  time  that  remained  to  him,  to  the  utmost.  Everything 
useful  to  him  was  in  the  ship,  and  thither  it  became  indis 
pensable  for  him  to  repair,  if  he  wished  to  retain  even  a 
chance  for  life.  Opening  an  umbrella,  then,  and  support 
ing  his  tottering  legs  by  a  cane,  Mark  commenced  a  walk 
of  very  near  a  mile,  under  an  almost  perpendicular  sun, 
at  the  hottest  season  of  the  year.  Twenty  times  did  the 
young  man  think  he  should  be  compelled  to  sink  on  the 
bare  rock,  where  there  is  little  question  he  would  soon 
have  expired,  under  the  united  influence  of  the  fever  within 
and  the  burning  heat  without.  Despair  urged  him  on, 
and,  after  pausing  often  to  rest,  he  succeeded  in  entering 


132  THE  CRATER; 

the  cabin,  at  the  end  of  the  most  perilous  liour  he  had 
ever  yet  passed. 

No  words  of  ours  can  describe  the  grateful  sense  of 
coolness,  in  spite  of  the  boiling  blood  in  his  veins,  that 
Mark  Woolston  experienced  when  he  stepped  beneath  the 
shade  of  the  poop-deck  of  the  Rancocus.  The  young  man 
knew  that  he  was  about  to  be  seriously  ill,  and  his  life 
might  depend  on  the  use  he  made  of  the  next  hour,  or 
half-hour,  even.  He  threw  himself  on  a  settee,  to  get  a 
little  rest,  and  while  there  he  endeavoured  to  reflect  on  his 
situation,  and  to  remember  what  he  ought  to  do.  The 
medicine-chest  always  stood  in  the  cabin,  and  he  had  used 
its  contents  too  often  among  the  crew,  not  to  have  some 
knowledge  of  their  general  nature  and  uses.  Potions  were 
kept  prepared  in  that  depository,  and  he  staggered  to  the 
table,  opened  the  chest,  took  a  ready-mixed  dose  of  the 
sort  he  believed  best  for  him,  poured  water  on  it  from  the 
filterer,  and  swallowed  it.  Our  mate  ever  afterwards  be 
lieved  that  draught  saved  his  life.  It  soon  made  him 
deadly  sick,  and  produced  an  action  in  his  whole  system 
For  an  hour  he  was  under  its  influence,  when  he  was  en 
abled  to  get  into  his  berth,  exhausted  and  literally  unable 
any  longer  to  stand.  How  long  he  remained  in  that  berth, 
or  near  it  rather — for  he  was  conscious  of  having  crawled 
from  it  in  quest  of  water,  and  for  other  purposes,  on  several 
occasions — but,  how  long  he  was  confined  to  his  cabin, 
Mark  Woolston  never  knew.  The  period  was  certainly 
to  be  measured  by  days,  and  he  sometimes  fancied  by 
weeks.  The  first  probably  was  the  truth,  though  it  might 
have  been  a  fortnight.  Most  of  that  time  his  head  was 
light  with  fever,  though  there  were  intervals  when  reason 
was,  at  least  partially,  restored  to  him,  and  he  became 
painfully  conscious  of  the  horrors  of  his  situation.  Of  food 
and  water  he  had  a  sufficiency,  the  filterer  and  a  bread-bag 
being  quite  near  him,  and  he  helped  himself  often  from  the 
first,  in  particular ;  a  single  mouthful  of  the  ship's  biscuit 
commonly  proving  more  than  he  could  swallow,  even  after 
it  was  softened  in  the  water.  At  length  he  found  himself 
indisposed  to  rise  at  all,  and  he  certainly  remained  eight- 
and-forty  hours  in  his  berth,  without  quitting  it,  and  almost 
without  sleeping,  though  most  of  the  time  in  a  sort  of  doze. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  133 

At  length  the  fever  abated  in  its  violence,  though  it 
began  to  assume,  what  for  a  man  in  Mark  Woolston's  situ 
ation  was  perhaps  more  dangerous,  a  cha  '  I'ter  of  a  low 
type,  lingering  in  his  system  and  killing  .'mi  by  inches. 
Mark  was  aware  of  his  condition,  and  though:  of  the  means 
of  relief.  The  ship  had  some  good  Philadelphia  porter  in 
her,  and  a  bottle  of  it  stood  on  a  shelf  over  his  berth.  This 
object  caught  his  eye,  and  he  actually  longed  for  a  draught 
/>f  that  porter.  He  had  sufficient  strength  to  raise  him 
self  high  enough  to  reach  it,  but  it  far  exceeded  his  powers 
to  draw  the  cork,  even  had  the  ordinary  means  been  at 
hand,  which  they  were  not.  There  was  a  hammer  on  the 
shelf,  however,  and  with  that  instrument  he  did  succeed 
in  making  a  hole  in  the  side  of  the  bottle,  and  in  filling  a 
tumbler.  This  liquor  he  swallowed  at  a  single  draught. 
It  tasted  deliciously  to  him,  and  he  took  a  second  tumbler 
full,  when  he  lay  down,  uncertain  as  to  the  consequences. 
That  his  head  was  affected  by  these  two  glasses  of  porter, 
Mark  himself  was  soon  aware,  and  shortly  after  drowsiness 
followed.  After  lying  in  an  uneasy  slumber  for  half  an 
hour,  his  whole  person  was  covered  with  a  gentle  perspira 
tion,  in  which  condition,  after  drawing  the  sheet  around 
him,  the  sick  man  fell  asleep. 

Our  patient  never  knew  how  long  he  slept,  on  this  all- 
important  occasion.  The  period  certainly  included  part 
©f  two  days  and  one  entire  night ;  but,  afterwards,  when 
Mark  endeavoured  to  correct  his  calendar,  and  to  regain 
something  like  a  record  of  the  time,  he  was  inclined  to 
think  he  must  have  lain  there  two  nights  with  the  inter 
vening  day.  When  he  awoke,  Mark  was  immediately 
sensible  that  he  was  free  from  disease.  He  was  not  im 
mediately  sensible,  nevertheless,  how  extremely  feeble  dis 
ease  had  left  him.  At  first,  he  fancied  he  had  only  to  rise, 
take  nourishment,  and  go  about  his  ordinary  pursuits. 
But  the  sight  of  his  emaciated  limbs,  and  the  first  effort 
he  made  to  get  up,  convinced  him  that  he  had  a  long  state 
of  probation  to  go  through,  before  he  became  the  man  he 
had  been  a  week  or  two  before.  It  was  well,  perhaps, 
that  his  head  was  so  clear,  and  his  judgment  so  unob- 
scured  at  this,  his  first  return  to  consciousness. 

Mark  deemed  it  a  good  symptom  that  he  felt  disposed 
12 


134  THE  CRATER: 

to  eat.  How  many  days  he  had  been  altogether  without 
nourishment  he  could  not  say,  but  they  must  have  been 
several ;  nor  had  he  received  more  than  could  be  obtained 
from  a  single  ship's  biscuit  since  his  attack.  All  this 
came  to  his  mind,  with  a  distinct  recollection  that  he  must 
be  his  own  physician  and  nurse.  For  a  few  minutes  he 
lay  still,  during  which  he  addressed  himself  to  God,  with 
thanks  for  having  spared  his  life  until  reason  was  restored. 
Then  he  bethought  him,  well  as  his  feeble  state  would 
allow,  of  the  course  he  ought  to  pursue.  On  a  table  in 
the  cabin,  and  in  sight  of  his  berth,  through  the  state-room 
door,  was  a  liquor-case,  containing  wines,  brandy,  and  gin. 
Our  sick  man  thought  all  might  yet  go  well,  could  he  get 
a  few  spoonsful!  of  an  excellent  port  wine  which  that  case 
contained,  and  which  had  been  provided  expressly  for  cases 
of  sickness.  To  do  this,  however,  it  was  necessary  to  ob 
tain  the  key,  to  open  the  case,  and  to  pour  out  the  liquor; 
three  things,  of  which  he  distrusted  his  powers  to  perform 
that  which  was  the  least  difficult. 

The  key  of  the  liquor-case  was  in  the  draw  of  an  open 
secretary,  which,  fortunately,  stood  between  him  and  the 
table.  Another  effort  was  made  to  rise,  which  so  far  suc 
ceeded  as  to  enable  the  invalid  to  sit  up  in  his  bed.  The 
cool  breeze  which  aired  the  cabin  revived  him  a  little,  and 
he  was  able  to  stretch  out  a  hand  and  turn  the  cock  of  the 
filterer,  which  he  had  himself  drawn  near  his  berth,  while 
under  the  excitement  of  fever,  in  order  to  obtain  easy  ac 
cess  to  water.  Accidentally  this  filterer  stood  in  a  draught, 
and  the  quart  or  two  of  water  that  had  not  yet  evaporated 
was  cool  and  palatable;  that  is,  cool  for  a  ship  and  such 
a  climate.  One  swallow  of  the  water  was  all  Mark  ven 
tured  on,  but  it  revived  him  more  than  he  could  believe 
possible.  Near  the  glass  into  which  he  had  drawn  the 
water,  lay  a  small  piece  of  pilot  bread,  and  this  he  dropped 
into  the  tumbler.  Then  he  ventured  to  try  his  feet,  when 
he  found  a  dizziness  come  over  him,  that  compelled  him 
lo  fall  back  on  his  berth.  Recovering  from  this  in  a  minute 
or  two,  a  second  attempt  succeeded  better,  and  the  poor 
fellow,  by  supporting  himself  against  the  bulkheads,  and 
by  leaning  on  chairs,  was  enabled  to  reach  the  desk.  The 
key  was  easily  obtained,  and  the  table  was  next  reached. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  135 

Here  Mark  sunk  into  a  chair,  as  much  exhausted  as  he 
would  have  been,  previously  to  his  illness,  by  a  desperate 
effort  to  defend  life. 

The  invalid  was  in  his  shirt,  and  the  cool  sea-breeze  had 
the  effect  of  an  air-bath  on  him.  It  revived  him  in  a  little 
while,  when  he  applied  the  key,  opened  the  case,  got  out 
the  bottle  by  using  both  hands,  though  it  was  nearly  empty, 
and  poured  out  a  wine-glass  of  the  liquor.  With  these 
little  exertions  he  was  so  much  exhausted  as  almost  to 
faint.  Nothing  saved  him,  probably,  but  a  sip  of  the  wine 
which  he  took  from  the  glass  as  it  stood  on  the  table.  It 
has  been  much  the  fashion,  of  late  years,  to  decry  wine, 
and  this  because  it  is  a  gift  of  Providence  that  has  been 
greatly  abused.  In  Mark  Woolston's  instance  it  proved, 
what  it  was  designed  to  be,  a  blessing  instead  of  a  curse. 
That  single  sip  of  wine  produced  an  effect  on  him  like 
that  of  magic.  It  enabled  him  soon  to  obtain  his  tumbler 
of  water,  into  which  he  poured  the  remainder  of  the  liquor. 
With  the  tumbler  in  his  hand,  the  invalid  next  essayed  to 
cross  the  cabin,  and  to  reach  the  berth  in  the  other  state 
room.  He  was  two  or  three  minutes  in  making  this  pas 
sage,  sustained  by  a  chair,  into  which  he  sunk  not  less 
than  three  times,  and  revived  by  a  few  more  sips  of  the 
wine  and  water.  In  this  state-room  was  a  bed  with  clean 
cool  linen,  that  had  been  prepared  for  Bob,  but  which  that 
worthy  fellow  had  pertinaciously  refused  to  use,  out  of 
respect  to  his  officer.  On  these  sheets  Mark  now  sank, 
almost  exhausted.  He  had  made  a  happy  exchange,  how 
ever,  the  freshness  and  sweetness  of  the  new  bed,  of  itself, 
acting  as  delicious  restoratives. 

After  resting  a  few  minutes,  the  solitary  invalid  formed 
a  new  plan  of  proceeding.  He  knew  the  importance  of 
not  over-exerting  himself,  but  he  also  knew  the  importance 
of  cleanliness  and  of  a  renovation  of  his  strength.  By  this 
time  the  biscuit  had  got  to  be  softened  in  the  wine  and 
water,  and  he  took  a  piece,  and  after  masticating  it  well, 
swallowed  it.  This  was  positively  the  first  food  the  sick 
and  desolate  young  man  had  received  in  a  week.  Fully 
aware  of  this,  he  abstained  from  taking  a  second  mouthful, 
though  sorely  pressed  to  it  by  hunger.  So  strong  was  the 
temptation,  and  so  sweet  did  that  morsel  taste,  that  Mark 


136  THE  CRATER; 

felt  he  might  not  refrain  unless  he  had  something  to  occupy 
his  mind  for  a  few  minutes.  Taking  a  small  swallow  of 
the  wine  and  water,  he  again  got  on  his  feet,  and  staggered 
to  the  drawer  in  which  poor  Captain  Crutchely  had  kept 
his  linen.  Here  he  got  a  shirt,  and  tottered  on  as  far  as 
the  quarter-deck.  Beneath  the  awning  Mark  had  kept  the 
section  of  a  hogshead,  as  a  bathing-tub,  and  for  the  pur 
pose  of  catching  the  rain-water  that  ran  from  the  awning, 
Kitty  often  visiting  the  ship  and  drinking  from  this  re 
servoir. 

The  invalid  found  the  tub  full  of  fresh  and  sweet  water, 
and  throwing  aside  the  shirt  in  which  he  had  lain  so  long, 
he  rather  fell  than  seated  himself  in  the  water.  After  re 
maining  a  sufficient  time  to  recover  his  breath,  Mark 
washed  his  head,  and  long  matted  beard,  and  all  parts  of 
his  frame,  as  well  as  his  strength  would  allow.  Pie  must 
have  remained  in  the  water  several  minutes,  when  he  ma 
naged  to  tear  himself  from  it,  as  fearful  of  excess  from  this 
indulgence  as  from  eating.  The  invalid  now  felt  like  a 
new  man !  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  express  the  change 
that  came  over  his  feelings,  when  he  found  himself  purified 
from  the  effects  of  so  long  a  confinement  in  a  feverish  bed, 
without  change,  or  nursing  of  any  sort.  After  drying  him 
self  as  well  as  he  could  with  a  towel,  though  the  breeze 
and  the  climate  did  that  office  for  him  pretty  effectually, 
Mark  put  on  the  clean,  fresh  shirt,  and  tottered  back  to 
his  own  berth,  where  he  fell  on  the  mattress,  nearly  ex 
hausted.  It  was  half-an-hour  before  he  moved  again, 
though  all  that  time  experiencing  the  benefits  of  the  nou 
rishment  taken,  and  the  purification  undergone.  The  bath, 
moreover,  had  acted  as  a  tonic,  giving  a  stimulus  to  the 
whole  system.  At  the  end  of  the  half  hour,  the  young 
man  took  another  mouthful  of  the  biscuit,  half  emptied  the 
tumbler,  fell  back  on  his  pillow,  and  was  soon  in  a  sweet 
sleep. 

It  was  near  sunset  when  Mark  lost  his  consciousness  on 
this  occasion,  nor  did  he  recover  it  until  the  light  of  day 
was  once  more  cheering  the  cabin.  He  had  slept  pro 
foundly  twelve  hours,  and  this  so  much  the  more  readily 
from  the  circumstance  that  he  had  previously  refreshed 
himself  with  a  bath  and  clean  linen.  The  first  conscious- 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  137 

ness  of  his  situation  was  accompanied  with  the  bleat  of 
poor  Kitty.  That  gentle  animal,  intended  by  nature  to 
mix  with  herds,  had  visited  the  cabin  daily,  and  had  been 
at  the  sick  man's  side,  when  his  fever  was  at  its  height ; 
and  had  now  come  again,  as  if  to  inquire  after  his  night's 
rest.  Mark  held  out  his  hand,  and  spoke  to  his  companion, 
for  such  she  was,  and  thought  she  was  rejoiced  to  hear  his 
toice  again,  and  to  be  allowed  to  lick  his  hand.  There 
was  great  consolation  in  this  mute  intercourse,  poor  Mark 
feeling  the  want  of  sympathy  so  much  as  to  find  a  deep 
pleasure  in  this  proof  of  affection  even  in  a  brute. 

Mark  now  arose,  and  found  himself  sensibly  improved 
by  his  night's  rest,  the  washing,  and  the  nourishment  re 
ceived,  little  as  the  last  had  been.  His  first  step  was  to 
empty  the  tumbler,  bread  and  all.  Then  he  took  another 
bath,  the  last  doing  quite  as  much  good,  he  fancied,  as  his 
breakfast.  All  that  day,  the  young  man  managed  his  case 
with  the  same  self-denial  and  prudence,  consuming  a  ship's 
biscuit  in  the  course  of  the  next  twenty-four  hours,  and 
taking  two  or  three  glasses  of  the  wine,  mixed  with  water 
and  sweetened  with  sugar.  In  the  afternoon  he  endea 
voured  to  shave,  but  the  first  effort  convinced  him  he  was 
getting  well  too  fast. 

It  was  thrice  twenty-four  hours  after  his  first  bath,  be 
fore  Mark  Woolston  had  sufficient  strength  to  reach  the 
galley  and  light  a  fire.  In  this  he  then  succeeded,  and  he 
treated  himself  to  a  cup  of  good  warm  tea.  He  concocted 
some  dishes  of  arrow-root  and  cocoa,  too,  in  the  course  of 
that  and  the  next  day,  continuing  his  baths,  and  changing 
his  linen  repeatedly.  On  the  fifth  day,  he  got  off  his  beard, 
which  was  a  vast  relief  to  him,  and  by  the  end  of  the  week 
he  actually  crawled  up  on  the  poop,  where  he  could  get  a 
sight  of  his  domains. 

The  Summit  was  fast  getting  to  be  really  green  in  con 
siderable  patches,  for  the  whole  rock  was  now  covered 
with  grass.  Kitty  was  feeding  quietly  enough  on  the  hill 
side,  the  gentle  creature  having  learned  to  pass  the  curtain 
at  the  gate,  and  go  up  and  down  the  ascents  at  pleasure. 
Mark  scarce  dared  to  look  for  his  hogs,  but  there  they 
were  rooting  and  grunting  about  the  Reef,  actually  fat  and 
contented.  He  knew  that  this  foreboded  evil  to  his  garden, 
12* 


138  THE   CRATER; 

for  the  creatures  must  have  died  for  want  of  food  during 
his  illness,  had  riot  some  such  relief  been  found.  As  yet, 
his  strength  would  not  allow  him  to  go  ashore,  and  he  was 
obliged  to  content  himself  with  this  distant  view  of  his 
estate.  The  poultry  appeared  to  be  well,  and  the  invalid 
fancied  he  saw  chickens  running  at  the  side  of  one  of  the 
hens. 

It  was  a  week  later  before  Mark  ventured  to  go  as  far 
as  the  crater.  On  entering  it,  he  found  that  his  conjec 
tures  concerning  the  garden  were  true.  Two-thirds  of  it 
had  been  dug  over  by  the  snouts  of  his  pigs,  quite  as  ef 
fectually  as  he  could  have  done  it,  in  his  vigour,  with  the 
spade.  Tops  and  roots  had  been  demolished  alike,  and 
about  as  much  wasted  as  had  been  consumed.  Kitty  was 
found,  Jlagrante  delictu,  nibbling  at  the  beans,  which,  by 
this  time,  were  dead  ripe.  The  peas,  and  beans,  and  In 
dian  corn  had  made  good  picking  for  the  poultry;  and 
everything  possessing  life  had  actually  been  living  in  abun 
dance,  while  the  sick  man  had  lain  unconscious  of  even 
his  own  existence,  in  a  state  as  near  death  as  life. 

Mark  found  his  awning  standing,  and  was  glad  to  rest 
an  hour  or  two  in  his  hammock,  after  looking  at  the  gar 
den.  While  there  the  hogs  entered  the  crater,  and  made 
a  meal  before  his  eyes.  To  his  surprise,  the  sow  was  fol 
lowed  by  ten  little  creatures,  that  were  already  getting  to 
be  of  the  proper  size  for  eating.  A  ravenous  appetite  was 
now  Mark's  greatest  torment,  and  the  coarse  food  of  the 
ship  was  rather  too  heavy  for  him.  He  had  exhausted  his 
wit  in  contriving  dishes  of  flour,  and  pined  for  something 
more  grateful  than  salted  beef,  or  pork.  Although  he 
somewhat  distrusted  his  strength,  yet  longing  induced  him 
to  make  an  experiment.  A  fowling-piece,  loaded  with 
ball,  was  under  the  awning;  and  freshening  the  priming, 
the  young  man  watched  his  opportunity  when  one  of  the 
grunters  was  in  a  good  position,  and  shot  it  in  the  head. 
Then  cutting  its  throat  with  a  knife,  he  allowed  it  to  bleed, 
when  he  cleaned,  and  skinned  it.  This  last  operation  was 
not  very  artistical,  but  it  was  necessary  in  the  situation  of 
our  invalid.  With  the  carcase  of  this  pig,  which  was  quite 
as  much  as  he  could  even  then  carry  back  to  the  ship, 
though  the  animal  was  not  yet  six  weeks  old,  Mark  made 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  139 

certain  savoury  and  nourishing  dishes,  that  contributed 
essentially  to  the  restoration  of  his  strength.  In  the  course 
of  the  ensuing  month  three  more  of  the  pigs  shared  the 
same  fate,  as  did  half-a-dozen  of  the  brood  of  chickens 
already  mentioned,  though  the  last  were  not  yet  half-grown. 
But  Mark  felt,  now,  as  if  he  could  eat  the  crater,  though 
as  yet  he  had  not  been  able  to  clamber  to  the  Summit. 


CHAPTER  X. 

"  Yea !  long  as  nature's  humblest  child 
Hath  kept  her  temple  undefiled 

By  sinful  sacrifice, 

Earth's  fairest  scenes  are  all  his  own, 
He  is  a  monarch,  and  his  throne 
Is  built  amid  the  skies." 

Witsox. 

OUR  youthful  hermit  was  quite  two  months  in  regaining 
his  strength,  though,  by  the  end  of  one  he  was  able  to  look 
about  him,  and  turn  his  hand  to  many  little  necessary  jobs. 
The  first  thing  he  undertook  was  to  set  up  a  gate  that 
would  keep  the  animals  on  the  outside  of  the  crater.  The 
pigs  had  not  only  consumed  much  the  largest  portion  of 
his  garden  truck,  but  they  had  taken  a  fancy  to  break  up 
the  crust  of  that  part  of  the  crater  where  the  grass  was 
showing  itself,  and  to  this  inroad  upon  his  meadows,  Mark 
had  no  disposition  to  submit.  He  had  now  ascertained 
that  the  surface  of  the  plain,  though  of  a  rocky  appearance, 
was  so  far  shelly  and  porous  that  the  seeds  had  taken  very 
generally ;  and  as  soon  as  their  roots  worked  their  way 
into  the  minute  crevices,  he  felt  certain  they  would  of 
themselves  convert  the  whole  surface  into  a  soil  sufficiently 
rich  to  nourish  the  plants  he  wished  to  produce  there. 
Under  such  circumstances  he  did  not  desire  the  assistance 
of  the  hogs.  As  yet,  however,  the  animals  had  done  good, 
rather  than  harm  to  the  garden,  by  stirring  the  soil  up, 
and  mixing  the  sea-weed  and  decayed  fish  with  it;  but 


140  THE   CRATER; 

among  the  grass  they  threatened  to  be  more  destructive 
than  useful.  In  most  places  the  crust  of  the  plain  was  just 
thick  enough  to  bear  the  weight  of  a  man,  and  Mark,  no 
geologist,  by  the  way,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  ex 
isted  at  all  more  through  the  agency  of  the  salt  deposited 
in  ancient  floods,  than  from  any  other  cause.  According 
to  tfie  great  general  law  of  the  earth,  soil  should  have  been 
formed  from  rock,  and  not  rock  from  soil ;  though  there 
certainly  are  cases  in  which  the  earths  indurate,  as  well 
as  become  disintegrated.  As  we  are  not  professing  to 
give  a  scientific  account  of  these  matters,  we  shall  simply 
state  the  facts,  leaving  better  scholars  than  ourselves  to 
account  for  their  existence. 

Mark  made  his  gate  out  of  the  fife-rail,  at  the  foot  of  the 
mainmast,  sawing  off  the  stanchions  for  that  purpose. 
With  a  little  alteration  it  answered  perfectly,  being  made 
to  swing  from  a  post  that  was  wedged  into  the  arch,  by 
cutting  it  to  the  proper  length.  As  this  was  the  first  at 
tack  upon  the  Rancocus  that  had  yet  been  made,  by  axe 
or  saw,  it  made  the  young  man  melancholy;  and  it  was 
only  with  great  reluctance  that  he  could  prevail  on  himself 
to  begin  what  appeared  like  the  commencement  of  breaking 
up  the  good  craft.  It  was  done,  however,  and  the  gate 
was  hung;  thereby  saving  the  rest  of  the  crop.  It  was 
high  time ;  the  hogs  and  poultry,  to  say  nothing  of  Kitty, 
having  already  got  their  full  share.  The  inroads  of  the 
first,  however,  were  of  use  in  more  ways  than  one,  since 
they  taught  our  young  cultivator  a  process  by  which  he 
could  get  his  garden  turned  up  at  a  cheap  rate.  They 
also  suggested  to  him  an  idea  that  he  subsequently  turned 
to  good  account.  Having  dug  his  roots  so  early,  it  oc 
curred  to  Mark  that,  in  so  low  a  climate,  and  with  such  a 
store  of  manure,  he  might  raise  two  crops  in  a  year,  those 
which  came  in  the  cooler  months  varying  a  little  in  their 
properties  from  those  which  came  in  the  warmer.  On  this 
hint  he  endeavoured  to  improve,  commencing  anew  beds 
that,  without  it,  would  probably  have  lain  fallow  some 
months  longer. 

In  this  way  did  our  young  man  employ  himself  until  he 
found  his  strength  perfectly  restored.  But  the  severe  ill- 
he  had  gone  through,  with  the  sad  views  it  had  given 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  141 

him  of  some  future  day,  when  he  might  be  compelled  to 
give  up  life  itself,  without  a  friendly  hand  to  smooth  his 
pillow,  or  to  close  his  eyes,  led  him  to  think  far  more  se 
riously  than  he  had  done  before,  on  the  subject  of  the  true 
character  of  our  probationary  condition  here  on  earth,  and 
on  the  unknown  and  awful  future  to  which  it  leads  us. 
Mark  had  been  carefully  educated  on  the  subject  of  reli 
gion,  and  was  well  enough  disposed  to  enter  into  the  in 
quiry  in  a  suitable  spirit  of  humility ;  but,  the  grave  cir 
cumstances  in  which  he  was  now  placed,  contributed 
largely  to  the  clearness  of  his  views  of  the  necessity  of 
preparing  for  the  final  change.  Cut  off,  as  he  was,  from 
all  communion  with  his  kind ;  cast  on  what  was,  when  he 
first  knew  it,  literally  a  barren  rock  in  the  midst  of  the 
vast  Pacific  Ocean,  Mark  found  himself,  by  a  very  natural 
operation  of  causes,  in  much  closer  communion  with  his 
Creator,  than  he  might  have  been  in  the  haunts  of  the 
world.  On  the  Reef,  there  was  little  to  divert  his  thoughts 
from  their  true  course;  and  the  very  ills  that  pressed  upon 
him,  became  so  many  guides  to  his  gratitude  by  showing, 
through  the  contrasts,  the  many  blessings  which  had  been 
left  him  by  the  mercy  of  the  hand  that  had  struck  him. 
The  nights  in  that  climate  and  season  were  much  the 
pleasantest  portions  of  the  four-and-twenty  hours.  There 
were  no  exhalations  from  decayed  vegetable  substances  or 
stagnant  pools,  to  create  miasma,  but  the  air  was  as  pure 
and  little  to  be  feared  under  a  placid  moon  as  under  a 
noon-day  sun.  The  first  hours  of  night,  therefore,  were 
those  in  which  our  solitary  man  chose  to  take  most  of  his 
exercise,  previously  to  his  complete  restoration  to  strength  ; 
and  then  it  was  that  he  naturally  fell  into  an  obvious  and 
healthful  communion  with  the  stars. 

So  far  as  the  human  mind  has  as  yet  been  able  to  pene 
trate  the  mysteries  of  our  condition  here  on  earth,  with 
the  double  connection  between  the  past  and  the  future,  all 
its  just  inferences  tend  to  the  belief  in  an  existence  of  a 
vast  and  beneficent  design.     We  have  somewhere  heard,  or 
read,  that  the  gipsies  believe  that  men  are  the  fallen  angels, 
oiling  their  way  backward  on  the  fatal  path  along  which 
hey  formerly  rushed  to  perdition.     This  may  not  be,  pro 
bably  is  not  true,  in  its  special  detail ;  but  that  men  are 


142  THE   CRATER; 

placed  here  to  prepare  themselves  for  a  future  and  higher 
condition  of  existence,  is  not  only  agreeable  to  our  con 
sciousness,  but  is  in  harmony  with  revelation.  Among  the 
many  things  that  have  been  revealed  to  us,  where  so  many 
are  hid,  we  are  told  that  our  information  is  to  increase,  as 
we  draw  nearer  to  the  millennium,  until  "  The  whole  earth 
shall  be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  the 
waters  cover  the  sea."  We  may  be  far  from  that  blessed 
day;  probably  are;  but  he  has  lived  in  vain,  who  has  dwelt 
his  half  century  in  the  midst  of  the  civilization  of  this  our 
own  age,  and  does  not  see  around  him  the  thousand  proofs 
of  the  tendency  of  things  to  the  fulfilment  of  the  decrees, 
announced  to  us  ages  ago  by  the  pens  of  holy  men.  Rome, 
Greece,  Egypt,  and  all  that  we  know  of  the  past,  which 
comes  purely  of  man  and  his  passions;  empires,  dynasties, 
heresies  and  novelties,  come  and  go  like  the  changes  of 
the  seasons ;  while  the  only  thing  that  can  be  termed  stable, 
is  the  slow  but  sure  progress  of  prophecy.  The  agencies 
that  have  been  employed  to  bring  about  the  great  ends 
foretold  so  many  centuries  since,  are  so  very  natural,  that 
we  often  lose  sight  of  the  mighty  truth  in  its  seeming  sim 
plicity.  But,  the  signs  of  the  times  are  not  to  be  mistaken. 
Let  any  man  of  fifty,  for  instance,  turn  his  eyes  toward  the 
East,  the  land  of  Judea,  and  compare  its  condition,  its 
promises  of  to-day,  with  those  that  existed  in  his  own 
youth,  and  ask  himself  how  the  change  has  been  produced. 
That  which  the  Richards  and  Sis.  Louis  of  the  middle  ages 
could  not  effect  with  their  armed  hosts,  is  about  to  happen 
as  a  consequence  of  causes  so  obvious  and  simple  that  they 
are  actually  overlooked  by  the  multitude.  The  Ottoman 
power  and  Ottoman  prejudices  are  melting  away,  as  it 
might  be  under  the  heat  of  divine  truth,  which  is  clearing 
for  itself  a  path  that  will  lead  to  the  fulfilment  of  its  own 
predictions. 

Among  the  agents  that  are  to  be  employed,  in  impress 
ing  the  human  race  with  a  sense  of  the  power  and  benevo 
lence  of  the  Deity,  we  think  the  science  of  astronomy, 
with  its  mechanical  auxiliaries,  is  to  act  its  full  share. 
The  more  deeply  we  penetrate  into  the  arcana  of  nature, 
the  stronger  becomes  the  proofs  of  design;  and  a  deity 
thus  obviously,  tangibly  admitted,  the  more  profound  will 


OR,   VULCAN'S   TEAK.  143 

become  the  reverence  for  his  character  and  power.  In 
Mark  Woelston's  youth,  the  great  progress  which  has  since 
been  made  in  astronomy,  more  especially  in  the  way  of  its 
details  through  observations,  had  but  just  commenced.  A 
vast  deal,  it  is  true,  had  been  accomplished  in  the  way  of 
pure  science,  though  but  little  that  came  home  to  the  un 
derstandings  and  feelings  of  the  mass.  Mark's  education 
had  given  him  an  outline  of  what  Herschel  and  his  contem 
poraries  had  been  about,  however;  and  when  he  sat  on  the 
Summit,  communing  with  the  stars,  and  through  those 
distant  and  still  unknown  worlds,  with  their  Divine  First 
Cause,  it  was  with  as  much  familiarity  with  the  subject  as 
usually  belongs  to  the  liberally  educated,  without  carrying 
a  particular  branch  of  learning  into  its  recesses.  He  had 
increased  his  school  acquisitions  a  little,  by  the  study  and 
practice  of  Navigation,  and  had  several  works  that  he  was 
fond  of  reading,  which  may  have  made  him  a  somewhat 
more  accurate  astronomer  than  those  who  get  only  leading 
ideas  on  the  subject.  Hours  at  a  time  did  Mark  linger  on 
the  Summit,  studying  the  stars  in  the  clear,  transparent 
atmosphere  of  the  tropics,  his  spirit  struggling  the  while 
to  get  into  closer  communion  with  that  dread  Being  which 
had  produced  all  these  mighty  results;  among  which  the 
existence  of  the  earth,  its  revolutions,  its  heats  and  colds, 
its  misery  and  happiness,  are  but  specks  in  the  incidents 
of  a  universe.  Previously  to  this  period,  he  had  looked 
into  these  things  from  curiosity  and  a  love  of  science; 
now,  they  impressed  him  with  the  deepest  sense  of  the 
power  and  wisdom  of  the  Deity,  and  caused  him  the  better 
to  understand  his  own  position  in  the  scale  of  created 
beings. 

Not  only  did  our  young  hermit  study  the  stars  with  his 
own  eyes,  but  he  had  the  aid  of  instruments.  The  ship 
had  two  very  good  spy-glasses,  and  Mark  himself  was  the 
owner  of  a  very  neat  reflecting  telescope,  which  he  had 
purchased  with  his  wages,  and  had  brought  with  him  as  a 
source  of  amusement  and  instruction.  To  this  telescope 
there  was  a  brass  stand,  and  he  conveyed  it  to  the  tent  on 
the  Summit,  where  it  was  kept  for  use.  Aided  by  this 
instrument,  Mark  could  see  the  satellites  of  Jupiter  and 
Saturn,  the  ring  of  the  latter,  the  belts  of  the  former,  and 


144  THE  CRATER; 

many  of  the  phenomena  of  the  moon.  Of  course,  the 
spherical  forms  of  all  the  nearer  planets,  then  known  to 
astronomers,  were  plainly  to  be  seen  by  the  assistance  of 
this  instrument;  and  there  is  no  one  familiar  fact  connected 
with  our  observations  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  that  strikes 
the  human  mind,  through  the  senses,  as  forcibly  as  this. 
For  near  a  month,  Mark  almost  passed  the  nights  gazing 
at  the  stars,  and  reflecting  on  their  origin  and  uses.  He 
had  no  expectations  of  making  discoveries,  or  of  even  add 
ing  to  his  own  stores  of  knowledge :  but  his  thoughts  were 
brought  nearer  to  his  Divine  Creator  by  investigations  of 
this  sort;  for  where  a  zealous  mathematician  might  have 
merely  exulted  in  the  confirmation  of  some  theory  by  means 
of  a  fact,  he  saw  the  hand  of  God  instead  of  the  solution 
of  a  problem.  Thrice  happy  would  it  be  for  the  man  of 
science,  could  he  ever  thus  hold  his  powers  in  subjection  to 
the  great  object  for  which  they  were  brought  into  existence  ; 
and,  instead  of  exulting  in,  and  quarrelling  about  the  pride 
of  human  reason,  be  brought  to  humble  himself  and  his 
utmost  learning,  at  the  feet  of  Infinite  Knowledge  and 
power,  and  wisdom,  as  they  are  thus  to  be  traced  in  the 
path  of  the  Ancient  of  Days  ! 

By  the  time  his  strength  returned,  Mark  had  given  up, 
altogether,  the  hope  of  ever  seeing  Betts  again.  It  was 
just  possible  that  the  poor  fellow  might  fall  in  with  a  ship, 
or  find  his  way  to  some  of  the  islands ;  but,  if  he  did  so, 
it  would  be  the  result  of  chance  and  not  of  calculations. 
The  pinnace  was  well  provisioned,  had  plenty  of  water, 
and,  tempests  excepted,  was  quite  equal  to  navigating  the 
Pacific ;  and  there  was  a  faint  hope  that  Bob  might  con 
tinue  his  course  to  the  eastward,  with  a  certainty  of  reach 
ing  some  part  of  South  America  in  time.  If  he  should 
take  this  course,  and  succeed,  what  would  be  the  conse 
quence?  Who  would  put  sufficient  faith  in  the  story  of  a 
simple  seaman,  like  Robert  Betts,  and  send  a  ship  to  look 
for  Mark  Woolston?  In  these  later  times,  the  government 
would  doubtless  despatch  a  vessel  of  war  on  such  an  errand, 
did  no  other  means  of  rescuing  the  man  offer;  but,  at  the 
close  of  the  last  century,  government  did  not  exercise  that 
much  of  power.  It  scarcely  protected  its  seamen  from  the 
English  press-gang  and  the  Algerine  slave-driver;  much 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  145 

less  did  it  think  of  rescuing  a  solitary  individual  from  a 
rock  in  the  midst  of  the  Pacific.  American  vessels  did 
then  roam  over  that  distant  ocean,  but  it  was  comparatively 
in  small  numbers,  and  under  circumstances  that  promised 
but  little  to  the  hopes  of  the  hermit.  It  was  a  subject  he 
did  not  like  to  dwell  on,  and  he  kept  his  thoughts  as  much 
diverted  from  it  as  it  was  in  his  power  so  to  do. 

The  season  had  now  advanced  into  as  much  of  autumn 
as  could  be  found  within  the  tropics,  and  on  land  so  low. 
Everything  in  the  garden  had  ripened,  and  much  had  been 
thrown  out  to  the  pigs  and  poultry,  in  anticipation  of  its 
decay.  Mark  saw  that  it  was  time  to  re-commence  his 
beds,  selecting  such  seed  as  would  best  support  the  winter 
of  that  climate,  if  winter  it  could  be  called.  In  looking 
around  him,  he  made  a  regular  survey  of  all  his  posses 
sions,  inquiring  into  the  state  of  each  plant  he  had  put  into 
the  ground,  as  well  as  into  that  of  the  ground  itself.  First, 
then,  as  respects  the  plants. 

The  growth  of  the  oranges,  lemons,  cocoa-nuts,  limes, 
figs,  &/c.,  placed  in  rows  'beneath  the  cliffs,  had  been  pro 
digious.  The  water  had  run  off  the  adjacent  rocks  and 
kept  them  well  moistened  most  of  the  season,  though  a 
want  of  rain  was  seldom  known  on  the  Reef.  Of  the  two, 
too  much,  rather  than  too  little  water  fell ;  a  circumstance 
that  was  of  great  service,  however,  in  preserving  the  stock, 
which  had  used  little  beside  that  it  found  in  the  pools,  for 
the  last  ten  months.  The  shrubs,  or  little  trees,  were  quite 
a  foot  high,  and  of  an  excellent  colour.  Mark  gave  each 
of  them  a  dressing  with  the  hoe,  and  manured  all  with  a 
sufficient  quantity  of  the  guano.  About  half  he  transplanted 
to  spots  more  favourable,  putting  the  cocoa-nuts,  in  parti 
cular,  as  near  the  sea  as  he  could  get  them. 

With  respect  to  the  other  plants,  it  was  found  that  each 
nad  flourished  precisely  in  proportion  to  its  adaptation  to 
the  climate.  The  products  of  some  were  increased  in  size, 
while  those  of  others  had  dwindled.  Mark  took  note  of 
these  facts,  determining  to  cultivate  those  most  which  suc 
ceeded  best.  The  melons  of  both  sorts,  the  tomatoes,  ihe 
egg-plants,  the  peppers,  cucumbers,  onions,  beans,  corn, 
sweet-potatoes,  &c.  &c.,  had  all  flourished ;  while  the  Irish 
potato,  in  oarticular,  had  scarce  produced  a  tuber  at  all, 
13 


146  THE    CRATER? 

As  for  the  soil,  on  examination  Mark  found  it  had  been 
greatly  improved  by  the  manure,  tillage  and  water  it  had 
received.  The  hogs  were  again  let  in  to  turn  it  over  with 
their  snouts,  and  this  they  did  most  effectually  in  the  course 
of  two  or  three  days.  By  this  time,  in  addition  to  the 
three  grown  porkers  our  young  man  possessed,  there  were 
no  less  than  nine  young  ones.  This  number  was  getting 
to  be  formidable,  and  he  saw  the  necessity  of  killing  off, 
in  order  to  keep  them  within  reasonable  limits.  One  of 
the  fattest  and  best  he  converted  into  pickled  pork,  not 
from  any  want  of  that  article,  there  being  still  enough  left 
in  the  ship  to  last  him  several  years,  but  because  he  pre 
ferred  it  corned  to  that  which  had  been  in  the  salt  so  long 
a  time.  He  saw  the  mistake  he  had  made  in  allowing  the 
pigs  to  get  to  be  so  large,  since  the  meat  would  spoil  long 
before  he  could  consume  even  the  smallest-sized  shoats. 
For  their  own  good,  however,  he  was  compelled  to  shoot 
no  less  than  five,  and  these  he  buried  entire,  in  deep  places 
in  his  garden,  having  heard  that  earth  which  had  imbibed 
animal  substances,  in  this  way,  was  converted  into  excel 
lent  manure. 

Mark  now  made  a  voyage  to  Loam  Island,  in  quest  of  a 
cargo,  using  the  raft,  and  towing  the  dingui.  It  was  on 
this  occasion  that  our  young  man  was  made  to  feel  how 
much  he  had  lost,  in  the  way  of  labour,  in  being  deprived 
of  the  assistance  of  Bob.  He  succeeded  in  loading  his 
raft,  however,  and  was  just  about  to  sail  for  home  again, 
when  it  occurred  to  him  that  possibly  the  seeds  and  roots 
of  the  asparagus  he  had  put  into  a  corner  of  the  deposit 
might  have  come  to  something.  Sure  enough,  on  going 
to  the  spot,  Mark  found  that  the  seed  had  taken  well,  and 
hundreds  of  young  plants  were  growing  flourishingly,  while 
plants  fit  to  eat  had  pushed  their  tops  through  the  loam, 
from  the  roots.  This  was  an  important  discovery,  aspara 
gus  being  a  vegetable  of  which  Mark  was  exceedingly  fond, 
and  one  easily  cultivated.  In  that  climate,  and  in  a  soil 
sufficiently  rich,  it  might  be  made  to  send  up  new  shoots 
the  entire  year ;  and  there  was  little  fear  of  scurvy  so  long 
as  he  could  obtain  plenty  of  this  plant  to  eat.  The  melons 
and  other  vegetables,  however,  had  removed  all  Mark's 
dread  of  that  formidable  disease;  more  especially  as  he 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  147 

had  now  eggs,  chickens,  and  fresh  fish,  the  latter  in  quan 
tities  that  were  almost  oppressive.  In  a  word,  the  means 
of  subsistence  now  gave  the  young  man  no  concern  what 
ever.  When  he  first  found  himself  on  a  barren  rock,  in 
deed,  the  idea  had  almost  struck  terror  into  his  mind ;  but, 
now  that  he  had  ascertained  that  his  crater  could  be  culti 
vated,  and  promised,  like  most  other  extinct  volcanoes, 
unbounded  fertility,  he  could  no  longer  apprehend  a  disease 
which  is  commonly  owing  to  salted  provisions. 

When  Mark  found  his  health  completely  re-established, 
he  sat  down  and  drew  up  a  regular  plan  of  dividing  his 
time  between  work,  contemplation,  and  amusement.  For 
tunately,  perhaps,  for  one  who  lived  in  a  climate  where 
vegetation  was  so  luxuriant  when  it  could  be  produced  at 
all,  work  was  pressed  into  his  service  as  an  amusement. 
Of  the  last,  there  was  certainly  very  little,  in  the  common 
acceptation  of  the  word ;  but  our  hermit  was  not  without 
it  altogether.  He  studied  the  habits  of  the  sea-birds  that 
congregated  in  thousands  around  so  many  of  the  rocks  of 
the  Reef,  though  so  few  scarce  ever  ventured  on  the  crater 
island.  He  made  voyages  to  and  fro,  usually  connecting 
business  with  pleasure.  Taking  favourable  times  for  such 
purposes,  he  floated  several  cargoes  of  loam  to  the  Reef, 
as  well  as  two  enormous  rafts  of  sea-weed.  Mark  was 
quite  a  month  in  getting  these  materials  into  his  compost 
heap,  which  he  intended  should  lie  in  a  pile  during  the 
winter,  in  order  that  it  might  be  ready  for  spading  in  the 
spring.  We  use  these  terms  by  way  of  distinguishing  the 
seasons,  though  of  winter,  strictly  speaking,  there  was  none. 
Of  the  two,  the  grass  grew  better  at  mid-winter  than  at 
mid-summer,  the  absence  of  the  burning  heat  of  the  last 
being  favourable  to  its  growth.  As  the  season  advanced, 
Mark  saw  nis  grass  very  sensibly  increase,  not  only  in  sur 
face,  but  in  thickness.  There  were  now  spots  of  some 
size,  where  a  turf  was  forming,  nature  performing  all  her 
tasks  in  that  genial  climate,  in  about  a  fourth  of  the  time 
it  would  take  to  effect  the  same  object  in  the  temperate 
zone.  On  examining  these  places,  Mark  came  to  the  con 
clusion  that  the  roots  of  his  grasses  acted  as  cultivators, 
by  working  their  way  into  the  almost  insensible  crevices 
of  the  crust,  letting  in  air  and  water  to  places  whence  they 


148  THE  CRATER; 

had  hitherto  been  excluded.  This  seemed,  in  particu.ar, 
to  be  the  case  with  the  grass  that  grew  within  the  crater, 
which  had  increased  so  much  in  the  course  of  what  may 
be  termed  the  winter,  that  it  was  really  fast  converting  a 
plain  of  a  light  drab  colour,  that  was  often  painful  to  the 
eyes,  into  a  plot  of  as  lovely  verdure  as  ever  adorned  the 
meadows  of  a  Swiss  cottage.  It  became  desirable  to  keep 
this  grass  down,  and  Kitty  being  unable  to  crop  a  meadow 
of  so  many  acres,  Mark  was  compelled  to  admit  his  pigs 
and  poultry  again.  This  he  did  at  stated  times  only,  how- 
evjer;  or  when  he  was  at  work  himself  in  the  garden,  and 
could  prevent  their  depredations  on  his  beds.  The  rooting 
gave  him  the  most  trouble ;  but  this  he  contrived  in  a  great 
measure  to  prevent,  by  admitting  his  hogs  only  when  they 
were  eager  for  grass,  and  turning  them  out  as  soon  as  they 
began  to  generalize,  like  an  epicure  picking  his  nuts  after 
dinner. 

It  was  somewhere  near  mid-winter,  by  Mark's  calcula 
tions,  when  the  young  man  commenced  a  new  task  that 
was  of  great  importance  to  his  comfort,  and  which  might 
affect  his  future  life.  He  had  long  determined  to  lay  down 
a  boat,  one  of  sufficient  size  to  explore  the  whole  reef  in, 
if  not  large  enough  to  carry  him  out  to  sea.  The  dingui 
was  altogether  too  small  for  labour ;  though  exceedingly 
useful  in  its  way,  and  capable  of  being  managed  even  in 
pretty  rough  water  by  a  skilful  hand,  it  wanted  both  weight 
and  room.  It  was  difficult  to  float  in,  even  a  raft  of  sea 
weed,  with  so  light  a  boat;  and  as  for  towing  the  raft,  it 
was  next  to  impossible.  But  the  raft  was  unwieldy,  and 
when  loaded  down,  besides  carrying  very  little  for  its  great 
weight,  it  was  very  much  at  the  mercy  of  the  currents  and 
waves.  Then  the  construction  of  a  boat  was  having  an 
important  purpose  in  view,  and,  in  that  sense,  was  a  desi 
rable  undertaking. 

Mark  had  learned  so  much  in  putting  the  pinnace  toge 
ther,  that  he  believed  himself  equal  to  this  new  undertaking. 
Materials  enough  remained  in  the  ship  to  make  half-a-dozen 
boats,  and  in  tumbling  over  the  lumber  he  had  found  a 
quantity  of  stuff  that  had  evidently  been  taken  in  with  a 
view  to  repair  boats,  if  not  absolutely  to  construct  them. 
A  ship's  hold  is  such  an  omnium  gatherum,  stowage  being 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  149 

necessarily  so  close,  that  it  usually  requires  time  for  one 
who  does  not  know  where  to  put  his  hand  on  everything, 
to  ascertain  how  much  or  how  little  is  to  be  found  in  it. 
Such  was  the  fact  with  Mark,  whose  courtship  and  mar 
riage  had  made  a  considerable  inroad  on  his  duties  as  a 
mate.  As  he  overhauled  the  hold,  he  daily  found  fresh 
reasons  for  believing  that  Friend  Abraham  White  had 
made  provisions,  of  one  sort  and  another,  of  which  he  was 
profoundly  ignorant,  but  which,  as  the  voyage  had  termi 
nated,  proved  to  be  of  the  greatest  utility.  Thus  it  was, 
that  just  as  he  was  about  to  commence  getting  out  th^se 
great  requisites  from  new  planks,  he  came  across  a  stem, 
stern-frame,  and  keel  of  a  boat,  that  was  intended  to  be 
eighteen  feet  long.  Of  course  our  young  man  profited  by 
this  discovery,  getting  the  materials  of  all  sorts,  including 
these,  round  to  the  ship-yard  by  means  of  the  raft. 

For  the  next  two  months,  or  until  he  had  reason  to  be 
lieve  spring  had  fairly  set  in,  Mark  toiled  faithfully  at 
his  boat.  Portions  of  his  work  gave  him  a  great  deal  of 
trouble ;  some  of  it  on  account  of  ignorance  of  the  craft, 
and  some  on  account  of  his  being  alone.  Getting  the 
awning  up  anew  cost  poor  Mark  the  toil  of  several  days, 
and  this  because  his  single  strength  was  not  sufficient  to 
hoist  the  corners  of  that  heavy  course,  even  when  aided 
by  watch-tackles.  He  was  compelled  to  rig  a  crab,  with 
which  he  effected  his  purpose,  reserving  the  machine  to 
aid  him  on  other  occasions.  Then  the  model  of  the  boat 
cost  him  a  great  deal  of  time  and  labour.  Mark  knew  a 
good  bottom  when  he  saw  it,  but  that  was  a  very  different 
thing  from  knowing  how  to  make  one.  Of  the  rules  of 
draughting  he  was  altogether  ignorant,  and  his  eye  was 
his  only  guide.  He  adopted  a  plan  that  was  sufficiently 
ingenious,  though  it  would  never  do  to  build  a  navy  on  the 
same  principle. 

Having  a  great  plenty  of  deal,  Mark  got  out  in  the  rough 
about  twice  as  many  timbers  for  one  side  of  his  boat  as 
would  be  required,  in  this  thin  stuff,  when  he  set  them  up 
in  their  places.  Aided  by  this  beginning,  the  young  man 
began  to  dub  and  cut  away,  until  he  got  each  piece  into 
something  very  near  the  shape  his  eye  told  him  it  ought  to 
be.  Even  after  he  had  got  as  far  as  this,  our  boat-builder 
13* 


150  THE   CRATER; 

passed  a  week  in  shaving,  and  p'.aning,  and  squinting,  and 
in  otherwise  reducing  his  lines  to  fair  proportions.  Satis 
fied,  at  length,  with  the  bottom  he  had  thus  fashioned, 
Mark  took  out  just  one  half  of  his  pieces,  leaving  the  other 
half  standing.  After  these  moulds  did  he  saw  and  cut  his 
boat's  timbers,  making,  in  each  instance,  duplicates.  When 
the  ribs  and  floors  of  his  craft  were  ready,  he  set  them  up 
in  the  vacancies,  and  secured  them,  after  making  an  accu 
rate  fit  with  the  pieces  left  standing.  On  knocking  away 
the  deal  portions  of  his  work,  Mark  had  the  frame  of  his 
boat  complete.  This  was  much  the  most  troublesome  part 
of  the  whole  job;  nor  was  it  finished,  when  the  young  man 
was  obliged,  by  the  progress  of  the  seasons,  to  quit  the 
ship-yard  for  the  garden. 

Mark  had  adopted  a  system  of  diet  and  a  care  of  his 
person,  that  kept  him  in  perfect  health,  illness  being  the 
evil  that  he  most  dreaded.  His  food  was  more  than  half 
vegetable,  several  plants  having  come  forward  even  in  the 
winter ;  and  the  asparagus,  in  particular,  yielding  at  a  rate 
that  would  have  made  the  fortune  of  a  London  gardener. 
The  size  of  the  plants  he  cut  was  really  astounding,  a 
dozen  stems  actually  making  a  meal.  The  hens  laid  all 
winter,  and  eggs  were  never  wanting.  The  corned  pork 
gave  substance,  as  well  as  a  relish,  to  all  the  dishes  the 
young  man  cooked ;  and  the  tea,  sugar  and  coffee,  promis 
ing  to  hold  out  years  longer,  the  table  still  gave  him  little 
concern.  Once  in  a  month,  or  so,  he  treated  himself  to  a 
bean-soup,  or  a  pea-soup,  using  the  stores  of  the  Rancocus 
for  that  purpose,  foreseeing  that  the  salted  meats  would 
spoil  after  a  time,  and  the  dried  vegetables  get  to  be  worth 
less,  by  means  of  insects  and  worms.  By  this  time,  how 
ever,  there  were  fresh  crops  of  both  those  vegetables,  which 
grew  better  in  the  winter  than  they  could  in  the  summer, 
in  that  hot  climate.  Fish,  too,  were  used  as  a  change, 
whenever  the  young  man  had  an  inclination  for  that  sort 
of  food,  which  was  as  often  as  three  or  four  times  a  week ; 
the  little  pan-fish  already  mentioned,  being  of  a  sort  of 
which  one  would  scarcely  ever  tire. 

It  being  a  matter  of  some  moment  to  save  unnecessary 
labour,  Mark  seldom  cooked  more  than  once  in  twenty- 
four  hours,  and  then  barely  enough  to  last  for  that  day. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  151 

In  consequence  of  this  rule,  he  soon  learned  how  little  was 
really  necessary  for  the  wants  of  one  person,  it  being  his 
opinion  that  a  quarter  of  an  acre  of  such  soil  as  that  which 
now  composed  his  garden,  would  more  than  furnish  all  the 
vegetables  he  could  consume.  The  soil,  it  is  true,  was  of 
a  very  superior  quality.  Although  it  had  lain  so  long  un 
productive  and  seemingly  barren,  now  that  it  had  been 
stirred,  and  air  and  water  were  admitted,  and  guano,  and 
sea-weed,  and  loam,  and  dead  fish  had  been  applied,  and 
all  in  quantities  that  would  have  been  deemed  very  ample 
in  the  best  wrought  gardens  of  Christendom,  the  acre  he 
had  under  tillage  might  be  said  to  have  been  brought  to 
the  highest  stage  of  fertility.  It  wanted  a  little  in  consis 
tency,  perhaps ;  but  the  compost  heap  was  very  large, 
containing  enough  of  all  the  materials  just  mentioned  to 
give  the  garden  another  good  dressing.  As  for  the  grass, 
Mark  was  convinced  the  guano  was  all-sufficient  for  that, 
and  this  he  took  care  to  apply  as  often  as  once  in  two  or 
three  months. 

Our  young  man  was  never  tired,  indeed,  with  feasting 
his  eyes  with  the  manner  in  which  the  grass  had  spread 
over  the  mount.  It  is  true,  that  he  had  scattered  seed,  at 
odd  and  favourable  moments,  over  most  of  it,  by  this  time ; 
out  he  was  persuaded  the  roots  of  those  first  sown  would 
lave  extended  themselves,  in  the  course  of  a  year  or  two, 
;>ver  the  whole  Summit.  Nor  were  these  grasses  thin  and 
sickly,  threatening  as  early  an  extinction  as  they  had  been 
quick  in  coming  to  maturity.  On  the  contrary,  after 
breaking  what  might  be  called  the  crust  of  the  rock  with 
their  vigorous  though  nearly  invisible  roots,  they  made  a 
bed  for  themselves,  on  which  they  promised  to  repose  for 
ages.  The  great  frequency  of  the  rains  favoured  their 
growth,  and  Mark  was  of  opinion  after  the  experience  of 
one  summer,  that  his  little  mountain  might  be  green  the 
year  round. 

We  have  called  the  mount  of  the  crater  little,  but  the 
term  ought  not  to  be  used  in  reference  to  such  a  hill,  when 
the  extent  of  the  island  itself  was  considered.  By  actual 
measurement,  Mark  had  ascertained  that  there  was  one 
knoll  on  the  Summit  which  was  just  seventy-two  feet  above 
the  level  af  the  rock.  The  average  height,  however,  might 


152  THE   CRATER; 

be  given  as  somewhat  less  than  fifty.  Of  surface,  the  rocky 
barrier  of  the  crater  had  almost  as  much  as  the  plain  within 
it,  though  it  was  so  broken  and  uneven  as  not  to  appear 
near  as  large.  Kitty  had  long  since  determined  that  the 
hill  was  more  than  large  enough  for  all  her  wants;  and 
glad  enough  did  she  seem  when  Mark  succeeded,  after  a 
great  deal  of  difficulty,  in  driving  the  hogs  up  a  flight  of 
steps  he  had  made  within  the  crater,  to  help  her  crop  the 
herbage.  As  for  the  rooting  of  the  last,  so  long  as  they 
were  on  the  Summit,  it  was  so  much  the  better;  since,  in 
that  climate,  it  was  next  to  impossible  to  kill  grass  that 
was  once  fairly  in  growth,  and  the  more  the  crust  of  the 
ashes  was  broken,  the  more  rapid  and  abundant  would  be 
the  vegetation. 

Mark  had,  of  course,  abandoned  the  idea  of  continuing 
to  cultivate  his  melons,  or  any  other  vegetables,  on  the 
Summit,  or  he  never  would  have  driven  his  hogs  there. 
He  was  unwilling,  notwithstanding,  to  lose  the  benefit  of 
the  deposits  of  soil  and  manure  which  he  and  Bob  had 
made  there  with  so  much  labour  to  themselves.  After 
reflecting  what  he  could  do  with  them,  he  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  he  would  make  small  enclosures  around 
some  fifteen  or  twenty  of  the  places,  and  transplant  some 
of  the  fig-trees,  orange-trees,  limes,  lemons,  &,c.,  which 
still  stood  rather  too  thick  within  the  crater  to  ripen  their 
fruits  to  advantage.  In  order  to  make  these  little  enclo 
sures,  Mark  merely  drove  into  the  earth  short  posts,  pass 
ing  around  them  old  rope,  of  which  there  was  a  super 
abundance  on  board  the  ship.  This  arrangement  suggested 
the  idea  of  fencing  in  the  garden,  by  the  same  means,  in 
order  to  admit  the  pigs  to  eat  the  grass,  when  he  was  riot 
watching  them.  By  the  time  these  dispositions  were  made, 
it  was  necessary  to  begin  again  to  put  in  the  seeds. 

On  this  occasion  Mark  determined  to  have  a  succession 
of  crops,  and  not  to  bring  on  everything  at  once,  as  he  had 
done  the  first  year  of  his  tillage.  Accordingly,  he  would 
manure  and  break  up  a  bed,  and  plant  or  sow  it,  waiting 
a  few  days  before  he  began  another.  Experience  had  told 
him  that  there  was  never  an  end  to  vegetation  in  that  cli 
mate,  and  he  saw  no  use  in  pushing  his  labours  faster  than 
he  might  require  their  fruits.  It  was  true,  certain  plants 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  153 

did  better  if  permitted  to  come  to  maturity  in  particular 
periods,  but  the  season  was  so  long  as  very  well  to  allow 
of  the  arrangement  just  mentioned.  As  this  distribution 
of  his  time  gave  the  young  man  a  good  deal  of  leisure,  he 
employed  it  in  the  ship-yard.  Thus  the  boat  and  the  gar 
den  were  made  to  advance  together,  and  when  the  last  was 
sown  and  planted,  the  first  was  planked.  When  the  last 
bed  was  got  in,  moreover,  those  first  set  in  order  were 
already  giving  forth  their  increase.  Mark  had  abundance 
of  delicious  salad,  young  onions,  radishes  that  seemed  to 
grow  like  mushrooms,  young  peas,  beans,  &/c.,  in  quanti 
ties  that  enabled  him  to  turn  the  hogs  out  on  the  Reef, 
and  keep  them  well  on  the  refuse  of  his  garden,  assisted  a 
little  by  what  was  always  to  be  picked  up  on  the  rocks. 

By  this  time  Mark  had  settled  on  a  system  which  he 
thought  to  pursue.  There  was  no  use  in  his  raising  more 
pigs  than  he  could  use.  Taking  care  to  preserve  the 
breed,  therefore,  he  killed  off  the  pigs,  of  which  he  had 
fresh  litters,  from  time  to  time ;  and  when  he  found  the 
old  hogs  getting  to  be  troublesome,  as  swine  will  become 
with  years,  he  just  shot  them,  and  buried  their  bodies  in 
his  compost  heap,  or  in  his  garden,  where  one  common- 
sized  hog  would  render  highly  fertile  several  yards  square 
of  earth,  or  ashes.  This  practice  he  continued  ever  after, 
extending  it  to  his  fowls  and  ducks,  the  latter  of  which 
produced  a  great  many  eggs.  By  rigidly  observing  this 
rule,  Mark  avoided  an  evil  which  is  very  common  even  in 
inhabited  countries,  that  of  keeping  more  sfock  than  is 
good  for  their  owner.  Six  or  eight  hens  laid  more  eggs 
than  he  could  consume,  and  there  was  always  a  sufficient 
supply  of  chickens  for  his  wants.  In  short,  our  hermit 
had  everything  he  actually  required,  and  most  things  tkat 
could  contribute  to  his  living  in  great  abundance.  The 
necessity  of  cooking  for  himself,  and  the  want  of  pure,  cokl 
spring  water,  were  the  two  greatest  physical  hardships  he 
endured.  There  were  moments,  indeed,  when  Mark  would 
have  gladly  yielded  one-half  of  the  advantages  he  actually 
possessed,  to  have  a  good  spring  of  living  water.  Then 
he  quelled  the  repinings  of  his  spirit  at  this  privation,  by 
endeavouring  to  recall  how  many  blessings  were  left  at  his 
command,  compared  to  the  wants  and  sufferings  of  many 


154  THE  CRATER; 

another  shipwrecked  mariner  of  whom  he  had  read  or 
heard. 

The  spring  passed  as  pleasantly  as  thoughts  of  home  and 
Bridget  would  allow,  and  his  beds  and  plantations  flou 
rished  to  a  degree  that  surprised  him.  As  for  the  grass, 
as  soon  as  it  once  got  root,  it  became  a  most  beneficial 
assistant  to  his  plans  of  husbandry.  Nor  was  it  grass  alone 
that  rewarded  Mark's  labours  and  forethought  in  his  mea 
dows  and  pastures.  Various  flowers  appeared  in  the  herb 
age;  and  he  was  delighted  at  finding  a  little  patch  of  the 
common  wild  strawberry,  the  seed  of  which  had  doubtless 
got  mixed  with  those  of  the  grasses.  Instead  of  indulging 
his  palate  with  a  taste  of  this  delicious  and  most  salubrious 
fruit,  Mark  carefully  collected  it  all,  made  a  bed  in  his 
garden,  and  included  the  cultivation  of  this  among  his 
other  plants.  He  would  not  disturb  a  single  root  of  the 
twenty  or  thirty  different  shoots  that  he  found,  all  being 
together,  and  coining  from  the  same  cast  of  his  hand  while 
sowing,  lest  it  might  die ;  but,  with  the  seed  of  the  fruit, 
he  was  less  chary.  One  thing  struck  Mark  as  singular. 
Thus  far  his  garden  was  absolutely  free  from  weeds  of 
every  sort.  The  seed  that  he  put  into  the  ground  came 
up,  and  nothing  else.  This  greatly  simplified  his  toil, 
though  he  had  no  doubt  that,  in  the  course  of  time,  he 
should  meet  with  intruders  in  his  beds.  He  could  only 
account  for  this  circumstance  by  the  facts,  that  the  ashes 
of  the  volcano  contained  of  themselves  no  combination  of 
the  elements  necessary  to  produce  plants,  and  that  the 
manures  he  used,  in  their  nature,  were  free  from  weeds. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  155 


CHAPTER  XI 

*The  globe  around  earth's  hollow  surface  shakes, 
And  is  the  ceiling  of  her  steeping  sons : 
O'er  devastation  we  blind  revels  keep ; 
While  buried  towns  support  the  dancer's  heel." 

Youiro. 

IT  was  again  mid-summer  ere  Mark  Woolston  had  hia 
boat  ready  for  launching.  He  had  taken  things  leisurely, 
and  completed  his  work  in  all  its  parts,  before  he  thought 
of  putting  the  craft  into  the  water.  Afraid  of  worms,  he 
used  some  of  the  old  copper  on  this  boat,  too;  and  he 
painted  her,  inside  and  out,  not  only  with  fidelity,  but  with 
taste.  Although  there  was  no  one  but  Kitty  to  talk  to,  he 
did  not  forget  to  paint  the  name  which  he  had  given  to  his 
new  vessel,  in  her  stern-sheets,  where  he  could  always  see 
it.  She  was  called  the  "  Bridget  Yardley ;"  and,  notwith 
standing  the  unfavourable  circumstances  in  which  she  had 
been  put  together,  Mark  thought  she  did  no  discredit  to 
her  beautiful  namesake,  when  completed.  When  he  had 
everything  finished,  even  to  mast  and  sails,  of  the  last  of 
which  he  fitted  her  with  mainsail  and  jib,  the  young  man 
set  about  his  preparations  for  getting  his  vessel  afloat. 

There  was  no  process  by  which  one  man  could  move  a 
boat  of  the  size  of  the  Bridget,  while  out  of  its  proper  ele 
ment,  but  to  launch  it  by  means  of  regular  ways.  With  a 
view  to  this  contingency,  the  keel  had  been  laid  between 
the  ways  of  the  Neshamony,  which  were  now  all  ready  to 
be  used.  Of  course  it  was  no  great  job  to  make  a  cradle 
for  a  boat,  and  our  boat-builder  had  '  wedged  up,'  and  got 
the  keel  of  his  craft  off  the  '  blocks,'  within  eight-and-forty 
hours  after  he  had  begun  upon  that-  part  of  his  task.  It 
only  remained  to  knock  away  the  spur-shores  and  start 
the  boat.  Until  that  instant,  Mark  had  pursued  his  work 
on  the  Bridget  as  mechanically  and  steadily  as  if  hired  by 
the  day  When,  however,  he  perceived  that  he  was  so 


156  THE  CRATER; 

near  his  goal,  a  flood  of  sensations  came  over  the  young 
man,  and  his  limbs  trembled  to  a  degree  that  compelled 
him  to  be  seated.  Who  could  tell  the  consequences  to 
which  that  boat  might  lead  1  Who  knew  but  the  '  Bridget* 
might  prove  the  means  of  carrying  him  to  his  own  Bridget, 
and  restoring  him  to  civilized  life?  At  that  instant,  it 
appeared  to  Mark  as  if  his  existence  depended  on  the 
launching  of  his  boat,  and  he  was  fearful  some  unforeseen 
accident  might  prevent  it.  He  was  obliged  to  wait  several 
minutes  in  order  to  recover  his  self-possession. 

At  length  Mark  succeeded  in  subduing  this  feeling,  and 
he  resumed  his  work  with  most  of  his  former  self-command. 
Everything  being  ready,  he  knocked  away  the  spur-shores, 
and,  finding  the  boat  did  not  start,  he  gave  it  a  blow  with 
a  mawl.  This  set  the  mass  in  motion,  and  the  little  craft 
slid  down  the  ways  without  any  interruption,  until  it  be 
came  water-born,  when  it  shot  out  from  the  Reef  like  a 
duck.  Mark  was  delighted  with  his  new  vessel,  now  that 
it  was  fairly  afloat,  and  saw  that  it  sat  on  an  even  keel, 
according  to  his  best  hopes.  Of  course  he  had  not  neg 
lected  to  secure  it  with  a  line,  by  which  he  hauled  it  in 
towards  the  rock,  securing  it  in  a  natural  basin  which  was 
just  large  enough  for  such  a  purpose.  So  great,  indeed, 
were  his  apprehensions  of  losing  his  boat,  which  now 
seemed  so  precious  to  him,  that  he  had  worked  some  ring 
bolts  out  of  the  ship  and  let  them  into  the  rock,  where  he 
had  secured  them  by  means  of  melted  lead,  in  order  to 
make  fast  to. 

The  Bridget  was  not  more  than  a  fourth  of  the  size  of 
the  Neshamony,  though  rather  more  than  half  as  long. 
Nevertheless,  she  was  a  good  boat;  and  Mark,  knowing 
that  he  must  depend  on  sails  principally  to  move  her,  had 
built  a  short  deck  forward  to  prevent  the  seas  from  break 
ing  aboard  her,  as  well  as  to  give  him  a  place  in  which  he 
might  stow  away  various  articles,  under  cover  from  the 
rain.  Her  ballast  was  breakers,  filled  with  fresh  water,  of 
which  there  still  remained  several  in  the  ship.  All  these, 
as  well  as  her  masts,  sails,  oars,  &>c.,  were  in  her  when  she 
was  launched ;  and  that  important  event  having  taken 
place  early  in  the  morning,  Mark  could  not  restrain  his 
impatience  for  a  cruise,  but  determined  to  go  out  on  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK  157 

reef  at  once,  further  than  he  had  ever  yet  ventured  in  the 
dingui,  in  order  to  explore  the  seas  around  him.  Accord 
ingly,  he  put  some  food  on  board,  loosened  his  fasts,  and 
made  sail. 

The  instant  the  boat  moved  ahead,  and  began  to  obey 
her  helm,  Mark  felt  as  if  he  had  found  a  new  companion. 
Hitherto  Kitty  had,  in  a  measure,  filled  this  place;  but  a 
boat  had  been  the  young  man's  delight  on  the  Delaware, 
in  his  boyhood,  and  he  had  not  tacked  his  present  craft 
more  than  two  or  three  times,  before  he  caught  himself 
talking  to  it,  and  commending  it,  as  he  would  a  human 
being.  As  the  wind  usually  blew  in  the  same  direction, 
and  generally  a  good  stiff  breeze,  Mark  beat  up  between 
the  Reef  and  Guano  Island,  working  round  the  weather  end 
of  the  former,  until  he  came  out  at  the  anchorage  of  the 
Rancocus.  After  beating  about  in  that  basin  a  little  while, 
as  if  merely  to  show  off  the  Bridget  to  the  ship,  Mark  put 
the  former  close  by  the  wind,  and  stood  off  in  the  channel 
by  which  he  and  Bob  had  brought  the  latter  into  her  pre 
sent  berth. 

It  was  easy  enough  to  avoid  all  such  breakers  as  would 
be  dangerous  to  a  boat,  by  simply  keeping  out  of  white 
water  ;  but  the  Bridget  could  pass  over  most  of  the  reefs 
with  impunity,  on  account  of  the  depth  of  the  sea  on  them. 
Mark  beat  up,  on  short  tacks,  therefore,  until  he  found  the 
two  buoys  between  which  he  had  brought  the  ship,  and 
passing  to  windward  of  them,  he  stood  off  in  the  direction 
where  he  expected  to  find  the  reef  over  which  the  Ranco- 
cus  had  beaten.  He  was  not  long  in  making  this  disco 
very.  There  still  floated  the  buoy  of  the  bower,  watching 
as  faithfully  as  the  seaman  on  his  look-out !  Mark  ran  the 
boat  up  to  this  well-tried  sentinel,  and  caught  the  lanyard, 
holding  on  by  it,  after  lowering  his  sails. 

The  boat  was  now  moored  by  the  buoy-rope  of  the  ship's 
anchor,  and  it  occurred  to  our  young  man  that  a  certain 
use  might  be  made  of  this  melancholy  memorial  of  the  ca 
lamity  that  had  befallen  the  Rancocus.  The  anchor  lay 
quite  near  a  reef,  on  it  indeed  in  one  sense;  and  it  was  in 
such  places  that  fish  most  abounded.  Fishing-tackle  was 
in  the  boat,  and  Mark  let  down  a  line.  His  success  was 
orodigious.  The  fish  were  hauled  in  almost  as  fast  as  he 
14 


158  THE  CRATER; 

could  bait  and  lower  his  hook,  and  what  was  more  they 
proved  to  be  larger  and  finer  than  those  taken  at  the  ol'd 
fishing-grounds.  By  the  experience  of  the  half  hour  he 
passed  at  the  spot,  Mark  felt  certain  that  he  could  fill  his 
boat  there  in  a  day's  fishing.  After  hauling  in  some  twenty 
or  thirty,  however,  he  cast  off  from  the  lanyard,  hoisted  his 
sails,  and  crossed  the  reef,  still  working  to  windward. 

It  was  Mark's  wish  to  learn  something  of  the  nature  and 
extent  of  the  shoals  in  this  direction.  With  this  object  in 
view,  he  continued  beating  up,  sometimes  passing  boldly 
through  shallow  water,  at  others  going  a  )out  to  avoid  that 
which  he  thought  might  be  dangerous,  until  he  believed 
himself  to  be  about  ten  miles  to  windward  of  the  island. 
The  ship's  masts  were  his  beacon,  for  the  crater  had  sunk 
below  the  horizon,  or  if  visible  at  all,  it  was  only  at  inter 
vals,  as  the  boat  was  lifted  on  a  swell,  when  it  appeared  a 
low  hummock,  nearly  awash.  It  was  with  difficulty  that 
the  naked  spars  could  be  seen  at  that  distance;  nor  could 
they  be,  except  at  moments,  and  that  because  the  compass 
told  the  young  man  exactly  where  to  look  for  them. 

As  for  the  appearance  of  the  reefs,  no  naked  rock  was 
anywhere  to  be  seen  in  this  direction,  though  there  were 
abundant  evidences  of  the  existence  of  shoals.  As  well  as 
he  could  judge,  Mark  was  of  opinion  that  these  shoals  ex 
tended  at  least  twenty  miles  in  this  direction,  he  having 
turned  up  fully  five  leagues  without  getting  clear  of  them. 
At  that  distance  from  his  solitary  home,  and  out  of  sight 
of  everything  like  land,  did  the  young  man  eat  his  frugal, 
but  good  and  nourishing  dinner,  with  his  jib-sheet  to  wind 
ward  and  the  boat  hove-to.  The  freshness  of  the  breeze 
had  induced  him  to  reef,  and  under  that  short  sail,  he  found 
the  Bridget  everything  he  could  wish.  It  was  now  about 
the  middle  of  the  afternoon,  and  Mark  thought  it  prudent 
to  turn  out  his  reef,  and  run  down  for  the  crater.  In  half 
an  hour  he  caught  a  sight  of  the  spars  of  the  ship ;  and  ten 
minutes  later,  the  Summit  appeared  above  the  horizon. 

It  had  been  the  intention  of  our  young  sailor  to  stay 
out  all  night,  had  the  weather  been  promising.  His 
wish  was  to  ascertain  how  he  might  manage  the  boat, 
single-handed,  while  he  slept,  and  also  to  learn  the  extent 
of  the  shoals.  As  the  extraordinary  fertility  of  the  crater 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  159 

superseded  the  necessity  of  his  labouring  much  to  keep 
himself  supplied  with  food,  he  had  formed  a  plan  of  cruis 
ing  off  the  shoals,  for  days  at  a  time,  in  the  hope  of  falling 
in  with  something  that  was  passing,  and  which  might  carry 
him  back  to  the  haunts  of  men.  No  vessel  would  or  could 
come  in  sight  of  the  crater,  so  long  as  the  existence  of  the 
reefs  was  known ;  but  the  course  steered  by  the  Rancocus 
was  a  proof  that  ships  did  occasionally  pass  in  that  quarter 
of  the  Pacific.  Mark  had  indulged  in  no  visionary  hopes 
on  this  subject,  for  he  knew  he  might  keep  in  the  offing  a 
twelvemonth  and  see  nothing ;  but  an  additional  twenty- 
four  hours  might  realize  all  his  hopes. 

The  weather,  however,  on  this  his  first  experiment,  did 
not  encourage  him  to  remain  out  the  whole  night.  On  the 
contrary,  by  the  time  the  crater  was  in  sight,  Mark  thought 
he  had  not  seen  a  more  portentous-looking  sky  since  he 
had  been  on  the  Reef.  There  was  a  fiery  redness  in  the 
atmosphere  that  alarmed  him,  and  he  would  have  rejoiced 
to  be  at  home,  in  order  to  secure  his  stock  within  the  cra 
ter.  From  the  appearances,  he  anticipated  another  tem 
pest  with  its  flood.  It  is  true,  it  was  not  the  season  when 
the  last  occurred,  but  the  climate  might  admit  of  these 
changes.  The  difference  between  summer  and  winter  was 
very  trifling  on  that  reef,  and  a  hurricane,  or  a  gale,  was 
as  likely  to  occur  in  the  one  as  in  the  other. 

Just  as  the  Bridget  was  passing  the  two  buoys  by  which 
the  ship-channel  had  been  marked,  her  sail  flapped.  This 
was  a  bad  omen,  for  it  betokened  a  shift  of  wind,  which 
rarely  happened,  unless  it  might  be  from  six  months  to  six 
months,  without  being  the  precursor  of  some  sort  of  a  storm. 
Mark  was  still  two  miles  from  the  Reef,  and  the  little  wind 
there  was  soon  came  ahead.  Luckily,  it  was  smooth  water, 
and  very  little  air  sufficed  to  force  that  light  craft  ahead, 
while  there  was  usually  a  current  setting  from  that  point 
towards  the  crater.  The  birds,  moreover,  seemed  uneasy, 
the  air  being  filled  with  them,  thousands  flying  over  the 
boat,  around  which  they  wheeled,  screaming  and  appa 
rently  terrified.  At  first  Mark  ascribed  this  unusual  be 
haviour  of  his  feathered  neighbours  to  the  circumstance  of 
their  now  seeing  a  boat  for  the  commencement  of  such  an 
acquaintance ;  but,  recollecting  how  often  he  had  passed 


160  THE  CRATER; 

their  haunts,  in  the  dingui,  when  they  would  hardly  get 
out  of  the  way,  he  soon  felt  certain  there  must  be  another 
reason  for  this  singular  conduct. 

The  sun  went  down  in  a  bank  of  lurid  fire,  and  the 
Bridget  was  still  a  mile  from  the  ship.  A  new  apprehen 
sion  now  came  over  our  hermit.  Should  a  tempest  bring 
the  wind  violently  from  the  westward,  as  was  very  likely 
to  be  the  case  under  actual  circumstances,  he  might  be 
driven  out  to  sea,  and,  did  the  little  craft  resist  the  waves, 
forced  so  far  off  as  to  make  him  lose  the  Reef  altogether. 
Then  it  was  that  Mark  deeply  felt  how  much  had  been 
left  him,  by  casting  his  lot  on  that  beautiful  and  luxuriant 
crater,  instead  of  reducing  him  to  those  dregs  of  misery 
which  so  many  shipwrecked  mariners  are  compelled  to 
swallow !  How  much,  or  how  many  of  the  blessings  that 
he  enjoyed  on  the  Reef,  would  he  not  have  been  willing 
to  part  with,  that  evening,  in  order  to  secure  a  safe  arrival 
at  the  side  of  the  Rancocus !  By  the  utmost  care  to  profit 
by  every  puff  of  air,  and  by  handling  the  boat  with  the 
greatest  skill,  this  happy  result  was  obtained,  however, 
without  any  sacrifice. 

About  nine  o'clock,  and  not  sooner,  the  boat  was  well 
secured,  and  Mark  went  into  his  cabin.  Here  he  knelt 
and  returned  thanks  to  God,  for  his  safe  return  to  a  place 
that  was  getting  to  be  as  precious  to  him  as  the  love  of  life 
could  render  it.  After  this,  tired  with  his  day's  work,  the 
young  man  got  into  his  berth  and  endeavoured  to  sleep. 

The  fatigue  of  the  day,  notwithstanding  the  invigorating 
freshness  of  the  breeze,  acted  as  an  anodyne,  and  our 
young  man  soon  forgot  his  adventures  and  his  boat,  in 
profound  slumbers.  It  was  many  hours  ere  Mark  awoke, 
and  when  he  did,  it  was  with  a  sense  of  suffocation.  At 
first  he  thought  the  ship  had  taken  fire,  a  lurid  light  gleam 
ing  in  at  the  open  door  of  the  cabin,  and  he  sprang  to  his 
feet  in  recollection  of  the  danger  he  ran  from  the  maga 
zine,  as  well  as  from  being  burned.  But  no  cracking  of 
flames  reaching  his  ears,  he  dressed  hastily  and  went  out 
on  the  poop.  He  had  just  reached  this  deck,  when  he  felt 
the  whole  ship  tremble  from  her  truck  to  her  keel,  and  a 
rushing  of  water  was  heard  on  all  sides  of  him,  as  if  a  flood 
were  coming.  Hissing  sounds  were  heard,  and  streams 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  161 

of  fire,  and  gleams  of  lurid  light  were  seen  in  the  air.  It 
was  a  terrible  moment,  and  one  that  might  well  induce  any 
man  to  imagine  that  time  was  drawing  to  its  close. 

Mark  Woolston  now  comprehended  his  situation,  not 
withstanding  the  intense  darkness  which  prevailed,  except 
in  those  brief  intervals  of  lurid  light.  He  had  felt  the 
shock  of  an  earthquake,  and  the  volcano  had  suddenly  be 
come  active.  Smoke  and  ashes  certainly  filled  the  air,  and 
our  poor  hermit  instinctively  looked  towards  his  crater, 
already  so  verdant  and  lively,  in  the  expectation  of  see 
ing  it  vomit  flames.  Everything  there  was  tranquil ;  the 
danger,  if  danger  there  was,  was  assuredly  more  remote. 
But  the  murky  vapour  which  rendered  breathing  exceed 
ingly  difficult,  also  obstructed  the  view,  and  prevented  his 
seeing  where  the  explosion  really  was.  For  a  brief  space 
our  young  man  fancied  he  must  certainly  be  suffocated ; 
but  a  shift  of  wind  came,  and  blew  away  the  oppressive 
vapour,  clearing  the  atmosphere  of  its  sulphurous  and  most 
offensive  gases  and  odours.  Never  did  feverish  tongue 
enjoy  the  cooling  and  healthful  draught,  more  than  Mark 
rejoiced  in  this  change.  The  wind  had  got  back  to  its  old 
quarter,  and  the  air  he  respired  soon  became  pure  and  re 
freshing.  Had  the  impure  atmosphere  lasted  ten  minutes 
longer,  Mark  felt  persuaded  he  could  not  have  breathed  it 
with  any  safety. 

The  light  was  now  most  impatiently  expected  by  our 
young  man.  The  minutes  seemed  to  drag;  but,  at  length, 
the  usual  signs  of  returning  day  became  apparent  to  him, 
and  he  got  on  the  bowsprit  of  the  ship,  as  if  to  meet  it  in 
its  approach.  There  he  stood  looking  to  the  eastward, 
eager  to  have  ray  after  ray  shoot  into  the  firmament,  when 
he  was  suddenly  struck  with  a  change  in  that  quarter  of 
the  ocean,  which  at  once  proclaimed  the  power  of  the  effort 
which  the  earth  had  made  in  its  subterranean  throes. 
Naked  rocks  appeared  in  places  where  Mark  was  certain 
water  in  abundance  had  existed  a  few  hours  before.  The 
sea-wall,  directly  ahead  of  the  ship,  arid  which  never  showed 
itself  above  the  surface  more  than  two  or  three  inches,  in 
any  part  of  it,  and  that  only  at  exceedingly  neap  tides, 
was  now  not  onJy  bare  for  a  long  distance,  but  parts  rose 
ten  and  fifteen  feet  above  the  surrounding  sea.  This 
14* 


162  THE   CRATER; 

proved,  at  once,  that  the  earthquake  had  thrust  upward  a 
vast  surface  of  the  reef,  completely  altering  the  whole  ap 
pearance  of  the  shoal !  In  a  word,  nature  had  made  another 
effort,  and  islands  had  been  created,  as  it  might  be  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye. 

Mark  was  no  sooner  assured  of  this  stupendous  fact,  than 
he  hurried  on  to  the  poop,  in  order  to  ascertain  what 
changes  had  occurred  in  and  about  the  crater.  It  had 
been  pushed  upward,  in  common  with  all  the  rocks  for 
miles  on  every  side  of  it,  though  without  disturbing  its 
surface !  By  the  computation  of  our  young  man,  the  Reef, 
which  previously  lay  about  six  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
ocean,  was  now  fully  twenty,  so  many  cubits  having  been, 
by  one  single  but  mighty  effort  of  nature,  added  to  its  sta 
ture.  The  planks  which  led  from  the  stern  of  the  vessel 
to  the  shore,  and  which  had  formed  a  descent,  were  now 
nearly  level,  so  much  water  having  left  the  basin  as  to  pro 
duce  this  change.  Still  the  ship  floated,  enough  remaining 
to  keep  her  keel  clear  of  the  bottom. 

Impatient  to  learn  all,  Mark  ran  ashore,  for  by  this  time 
it  was  broad  daylight,  and  hastened  into  the  crater,  with 
an  intention  to  ascend  at  once  to  the  Summit.  As  he 
passed  along,  he  could  detect  no  change  whatever  on  the 
surface  of  the  Reef;  everything  lying  just  as  it  had  been 
left,  and  the  pigs  and  poultry  were  at  their  usual  business 
of  providing  for  their  own  wants.  Ashes,  however,  were 
strewn  over°the  rocks  to  a  depth  that  left  his  footprints  as 
distinct  as  they  could  have  been  made  in  a  light  snow. 
Within  the  crater  the  same  appearances  were  observed, 
fully  an  inch  of  ashes  covering  its  verdant  pastures  and  the 
whole  garden.  This  gave  Mark  very  little  concern,  for 
he  knew  that  the  first  rain  would  wash  this  drab-looking 
mantle  into  the  earth,  where  it  would  answer  all  the  pur 
poses  of  a  rich  dressing  of  manure. 

On  reaching  the  Summit,  our  young  man  was  enabled 
to  form  a  better  opinion  of  the  vast  changes  which  had 
been  wrought  around  him,  by  this  sudden  elevation  of  the 
earth's  crust.  Everywhere  sea  seemed  to  be  converted 
into  land,  or,  at  least,  into  rock.  All  the  white  water  had 
disappeared,  and  in  its  place  arose  islands  of  rock,  or 
mud,  or  sand.  A  good  deal  of  the  last  was  to  be  seen,  and 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  163 

some  quite  near  the  Reef,  as  we  shall  still  continue  to  call 
the  island  of  the  crater.  Island,  however,  it  could  now 
nardly  be  termed.  It  is  true  that  ribands  of  water  ap 
proached  it  on  all  sides,  resembling  creeks,  and  rivers  and 
small  sounds;  but,  as  Mark  stood  there  on  the  Summit,  it 
seemed  to  him  that  it  was  now  possible  to  walk  for  leagues, 
in  every  direction,  commencing  at  the  crater  and  following 
the  lines  of  reefs,  and  rocks,  and  sands,  that  had  been  laid 
bare  by  the  late  upheaving.  The  extent  of  this  change 
gave  him  confidence  in  its  permanency,  and  the  young  man 
had  hopes  that  what  had  thus  been  produced  by  the  Provi 
dence  of  God  would  be  permitted  to  remain,  to  answer  his 
own  benevolent  purposes.  It  certainly  made  an  immense 
difference  in  his  own  situation.  The  boat  could  still  be 
used,  but  it  was  now  possible  for  him  to  ramble  for  hours, 
if  not  for  days,  along  the  necks,  and  banks,  and  hummocks, 
and  swales  that  had  been  formed,  and  that  with  a  dry  foot. 
His  limits  were  so  much  enlarged  as  to  offer  something 
like  a  new  world  to  his  enterprise  and  curiosity. 

The  crater,  nevertheless,  was  apparently  about  the  centre 
of  this  new  creation.  To  the  south,  it  is  true,  the  eye 
could  not  penetrate  more  than  two  or  three  leagues.  A 
vast,  dun-looking  cloud,  still  covered  the  sea  in  that  direc 
tion,  veiling  its  surface  far  and  wide,  and  mingling  with 
the  vapours  of  the  upper  atmosphere.  Somewhere  within 
this  cloud,  how  far  or  how  near  from  him  he  knew  not, 
Mark  made  no  doubt  a  new  outlet  to  the  pent  forces  of  the 
inner  earth  was  to  be  found,  forming  another  and  an  active 
crater  for  the  exit  of  the  fires  beneath.  Geology  was  a 
science  that  had  not  made  its  present  progress  in  the  day 
of  Mark  Woolston,  but  his  education  had  been  too  good  to 
leave  him  totally  without  a  theory  for  what  had  happened. 
He  supposed  that  the  internal  fires  had  produced  so  much 
gas,  just  beneath  this  spot,  as  to  open  crevices  at  the  bot 
tom  of  the  ocean,  through  which  water  had  flowed  in  suffi 
cient  quantities  to  create  a  vast  body  of  steam,  which  steam 
had  been  the  immediate  agent  of  lifting  so  much  of  the 
rock  and  land,  and  of  causing  the  earthquake.  At  the 
eame  time,  the  internal  fires  had  acted  in  concert ;  and 
following  an  opening,  they  had  got  so  near  the  surface  as 
,o  force  a  chimney  for  their  own  exit,  in  the  form  of  this 


164  THE   CRATER; 

new  crater,  of  the  existence  of  which,  from  all  the  dgns  to 
the  southward,  Mark  did  not  entertain  the  smallest  doubt 

This  theory  may  have  been  true,  in  whole  or  in  part,  or 
it  may  have  been  altogether  erroneous.  Such  speculations 
seldom  turn  out  to  be  minutely  accurate.  So  many  un 
known  causes  exist  in  so  many  unexpected  forms,  as  to 
render  precise  estimates  of  their  effects,  in  cases  of  physical 
phenomena,  almost  as  uncertain  as  those  which  follow 
similar  attempts  at  an  analysis  of  human  motives  and  hu 
man  conduct.  The  man  who  has  been  much  the  subject 
of  the  conjectures  and  opinions  of  his  fellow-creatures,  in 
this  way,  must  have  many  occasions  to  wonder,  and  some 
to  smile,  when  he  sees  how  completely  those  around  him 
misjudge  his  wishes  and  impulses.  Although  formed  of 
the  same  substance,  influenced  by  the  same  selfishness, 
and  governed  by  the  same  passions,  in  nothing  do  men 
oftener  err  than  in  this  portion  of  the  exercise  of  their  in 
tellects.  The  errors  arise  from  one  man's  rigidly  judging 
his  fellow  by  himself,  and  that  which  he  would  do  he  fan 
cies  others  would  do  also.  This  rule  would  be  pretty  safe, 
could  we  always  penetrate  into  the  wants  and  longings  of 
others,  which  quite  as  often  fail  to  correspond  closely  with 
our  own,  as  do  their  characters,  fortunes,  and  hopes. 

At  first  sight,  Mark  had  a  good  deal  of  difficulty  in  un 
derstanding  the  predominant  nature  of  the  very  many 
bodies  of  water  that  were  to  be  seen  on  every  side  of  him. 
On  the  whole,  there  still  remained  almost  as  much  of  one 
element  as  of  the  other,  in  the  view;  which  of  itself,  how 
ever,  was  a  vast  change  from  what  had  previously  been  the 
condition  of  the  shoals.  There  were  large  bodies  of  water, 
little  lakes  in  extent,  which  it  was  obvious  enough  must 
disappear  under  the  process  of  evaporation,  no  communi 
cation  existing  between  them  and  the  open  ocean.  But, 
on  the  other  hand,  many  of  these  sheets  were  sounds,  or 
arms  of  the  sea,  that  must  always  continue,  since  they 
might  be  traced,  far  as  eye  could  reach,  towards  the  mighty 
Pacific.  Such,  Mark  was  induced  to  believe,  was  the  fact 
with  the  belt  of  water  that  still  surrounded,  or  nearly  sur 
rounded  the  Reef;  for,  placed  where  he  was,  the  young 
man  was  unable  to  ascertain  whether  the  latter  had,  or  had 
wot,  at  a  particular  point,  any  land  communication  with  an 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  165 

extensive  range  of  naked  rock,  sand,  mud,  and  deposit, 
that  stretched  away  to  the  westward,  for  leagues.  In  ob 
vious  connection  with  this  broad  reach  of  what  might  be 
termed  bare  ground,  were  Guano  and  Loam  Islands ;  nei 
ther  of  which  was  an  island  any  longer,  except  as  it  was  a 
part  of  the  whole  formation  around  it.  Nevertheless,  our 
young  man  was  not  sorry  to  see  that  the  channel  around 
the  Reef  still  washed  the  bases  of  both  those  important 
places  of  deposit,  leaving  it  in  his  power  to  transport  their 
valuable  manures  by  means  of  the  raft,  or  boat. 

The  situation  of  the  ship  next  became  the  matter  of 
Mark's  most  curious  and  interested  investigation.  She 
was  clearly  afloat,  and  the  basin  in  which  she  rode  had  a 
communication  on  each  side  of  it,  with  the  sound,  or  inlet, 
that  still  encircled  the  Reef.  Descending  to  the  shore, 
our  young  mariner  got  into  the  dingui,  and  pulled  out  round 
the  vessel,  to  make  a  more  minute  examination.  So  very 
limpid  was  the  water  of  that  sea,  it  was  easy  enough  to 
discern  a  bright  object  on  the  bottom,  at  a  depth  of  several 
fathoms.  There  were  no  streams  in  that  part  of  the  world 
to  pour  their  deposits  into  the  ocean,  and  air  itself  is 
scarce  more  transparent  than  the  pure  water  of  the  ocean, 
when  unpolluted  with  any  foreign  substances.  All  it  wants 
is  light,  to  enable  the  eye  to  reach  into  its  mysteries  for  a 
long  way.  Mark  could  very  distinctly  perceive  the  sand 
beneath  the  Rancocus'  keel,  and  saw  that  the  ship  still 
floated  two  or  three  feet  clear  of  the  bottom.  It  was  near 
high  water,  however;  and  there  being  usually  a  tide  of 
about  twenty  inches,  it  was  plain  enough  that,  on  certain 
winds,  the  good  old  craft  would  come  in  pretty  close  con 
tact  with  the  bottom.  All  expectation  of  ever  getting  the 
vessel  out  of  the  basin  must  now  be  certainly  abandoned, 
since  she  lay  in  a  sort  of  cavity,  where  the  water  was  six 
or  eight  feet  deeper  than  it  was  within  a  hundred  yards  on 
each  side  of  her. 

Having  ascertained  these  facts,  Mark  provided  himself 
with  a  fowling-piece,  provisions,  &,c.,  and  set  out  to  ex 
plore  his  newly  acquired  territories  on  foot.  His  steps 
were  first  directed  to  the  point  where  it  appeared  to  the 
eye,  that  the  vast  range  of  dry  land  to  the  westward,  ex 
tending  both  north  and  south,  had  become  connected  with 


166  THE   CRATER; 

the  Reef.  If  such  connection  existed  at  all,  it  was  by  two 
very  narrow  necks  of  rock,  of  equal  height,  both  of  which 
had  come  up  out  of  the  water  under  the  late  action,  which 
action  had  considerably  altered  and  extended  the  shores 
of  Crater  Island.  Sand  appeared  in  various  places  along 
these  shores,  now;  whereas,  previously  to  the  earthquake, 
they  had  everywhere  been  nearly  perpendicular  rocks. 

Mark  was  walking,  with  an  impatient  step,  towards  the 
neck  just  mentioned,  and  which  was  at  no  great  distance 
from  the  ship-yard,  when  his  eye  was  attracted  towards  s 
sandy  beach  of  several  acres  in  extent,  that  spread  itself 
along  the  margin  of  the  rocks,  as  clear  from  every  impurity 
as  it  was  a  few  hours  before,  when  it  had  been  raised  from 
out  of  the  bosom  of  the  ocean.  To  him,  it  appeared  that 
water  was  trickling  through  this  sand,  coming  from  beneath 
the  lava  of  the  Reef.  At  first,  he  supposed  it  was  merely 
the  remains  of  some  small  portion  of  the  ocean  that  had 
penetrated  to  a  cavity  within,  and  which  was  now  trickling 
back  through  the  crevices  of  the  rocks,  to  find  its  level, 
under  the  great  law  of  nature.  But  it  looked  so  pleasant 
to  see  once  more  water  of  any  sort  coming  upwards  from 
the  earth,  that  the  young  man  jumped  down  upon  the  sands, 
and  hastened  to  the  spot  for  further  inquiry.  Scooping  up 
a  little  of  the  water  in  the  hollow  of  his  hand,  he  found  it 
sweet,  soft,  and  deliciously  cool.  Here  was  a  discovery, 
indeed !  The  physical  comfort  for  which  he  most  pined 
was  thus  presented  to  him,  as  by  a  direct  gift  from  heaven ; 
and  no  miser  who  had  found  a  hoard  of  hidden  gold,  could 
have  felt  so  great  pleasure,  or  a  tenth  part  of  the  gratitude, 
of  our  young  hermit,  if  hermit  we  may  call  one  who  did 
not  voluntarily  seek  his  seclusion  from  the  world,  and  who 
worshipped  God  less  as  a  penance  than  from  love  and 
adoration. 

Before  quitting  this  new-found  treasure,  Mark  opened  a 
cavity  in  the  sand  to  receive  the  water,  placing  stone  around 
it  to  make  a  convenient  and  clean  little  basin.  In  ten 
minutes  this  place  was  filled  with  water  almost  as  limpid 
as  air,  &nd  every  way  as  delicious  as  the  palate  of  man 
could  require.  The  young  man  could  scarce  tear  himself 
away  from  the  spot,  but  fearful  of  drinking  too  much  he 
did  so,  after  a  time.  Before  quitting  the  spring,  however, 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  167 

he  placed  a  stone  of  some  size  at  a  gap  in  the  rock,  a  pre 
caution  that  completely  prevented  the  hogs,  should  they 
stroll  that  way,  from  descending  to  the  beach  and  defiling 
the  limpid  basin.  As  soon  as  he  had  leisure,  Mark  re 
solved  to  sink  a  barrel  in  the  sand,  and  to  build  a  fence 
around  it ;  after  which  the  stock  might  descend  and  drink 
at  a  pool  he  should  form  below,  at  pleasure. 

Mark  proceeded.  On  reaching  the  narrowest  part  of 
the  '  Neck,'  he  found  that  the  rocks  did  not  meet,  but  the 
Reef  still  remained  an  island.  The  channel  that  separated 
the  two  points  of  rock  was  only  about  twenty  feet  wide, 
however,  though  it  was  of  fully  twice  that  depth.  The 
young  man  found  it  necessary  to  go  back  to  the  ship-yard 
(no  great  distance,  by  the  way),  and  to  bring  a  plank  with 
which  to  make  a  bridge.  This  done,  he  passed  on  to  the 
newly  emerged  territory.  As  might  have  been  expected, 
the  rocks  were  found  tolerably  well  furnished  with  fish, 
which  had  got  caught  in  pools  and  crevices  when  the  water 
flowed  into  the  sea ;  and  what  was  of  still  more  importance, 
another  and  a  much  larger  spring  of  fresh  water  was  found 
quite  near  the  bridge,  gushing  through  a  deposit  of  sand 
of  some  fifteen  or  twenty  acres  in  extent.  The  water  of 
this  spring  had  run  down  into  a  cavity,  where  it  had  already 
formed  a  little  lake  of  some  two  acres  in  surface,  and 
whence  it  was  already  running  into  the  sea,  by  overflowing 
its  banks.  These  two  discoveries  induced  Mark  to  return 
to  the  Reef  again,  in  quest  of  the  stock.  After  laying 
another  plank  at  his  bridge,  he  called  every  creature  he 
had  over  into  the  new  territory ;  for  so  great  was  the  com 
mand  he  had  obtained  over  even  the  ducks,  that  all  came 
willingly  at  his  call.  As  for  Kitty,  she  was  never  more 
happy  than  when  trotting  at  his  side,  accompanying  him 
in  his  walks,  like  a  dog. 

Glad  enough  were  the  pigs,  in  particular,  to  obtain  this 
new  range.  .  Here  was  everything  they  could  want ;  food 
in  thousands,  sand  to  root  on,  fresh  water  to  drink,  pools 
to  wallow  in,  and  a  range  for  their  migratory  propensities. 
Mark  had  no  sooner  set  them  at  work  on  the  sea-weed  and 
shell-fish  that  abounded  there,  for  the  time  being  at  least, 
than  he  foresaw  he  should  have  to  erect  a  gate  at  his 
bridge,  and  keep  the  hogs  here  most  of  the  time.  With 


168  THE   CRATER; 

such  a  range,  and  the  deposits  of  the  tides  alone,  they 
would  have  no  great  difficulty  in  making  their  own  living. 
This  would  enable  him  to  increase  the  number  kept,  which 
he  had  hitherto  been  obliged  to  keep  down  with  the  most 
rigid  attention  to  the  increase. 

Mark  now  set  out,  in  earnest,  on  his  travels.  He  was 
absent  from  the  Reef  the  entire  day.  At  one  time,  he 
thought  he  was  quite  two  leagues  in  a  straight  line  from 
the  ship,  though  he  had  been  compelled  to  walk  four  to 
get  there.  Everywhere  he  found  large  sheets  of  salt  water, 
that  had  been  left  on  the  rocks,  in  consequence  of  the  ca 
vities  in  the  latter.  In  several  instances,  these  little  lakes 
were  near  a  mile  in  length,  having  the  most  beautifully 
undulating  outlines.  None  of  them  were  deep,  of  course, 
though  their  bottoms  varied.  Some  of  these  bottoms  were 
clean  rock;  others  contained  large  deposits  of  mud ;  and 
others,  again,  were  of  a  clean,  dark-coloured  sand.  One, 
and  one  only,  had  a  bottom  of  a  bright,  light-coloured  sand. 
As  a  matter  of  course,  these  lakes,  or  pools,  must  shortly 
evaporate,  leaving  their  bottoms  bare,  or  encrusted  with 
salt.  One  thing  gave  the  young  man  great  satisfaction. 
He  had  kept  along  the  margin  of  the  channel  that  com 
municated  with  the  water  that  surrounded  the  Reef,  and, 
when  at  the  greatest  distance  from  the  crater,  he  ascended 
a  rock  that  must  have  had  an  elevation  of  a  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea.  Of  course  most  of  this  rock  had  been  above 
water  previously  to  the  late  eruption,  and  Mark  had  often 
seen  it  at  a  distance,  though  he  had  never  ventured  through 
the  white  water  near  so  far,  in  the  dingui.  When  on  its 
apex,  Mark  got  an  extensive  view  of  the  scene  around  him. 
In  the  first  place,  he  traced  the  channel  just  mentioned, 
quite  into  open  water,  which  now  appeared  distinctly  not 
many  leagues  further,  towards  the  north-west.  There  were 
a  great  many  other  channels,  some  mere  ribands  of  water, 
others  narrow  sounds,  and  many  resembling  broad,  deep, 
serpenting  creeks,  which  last  was  their  true  character, 
being  strictly  inlets  from  the  sea.  The  lakes,  or  pools, 
could  be  seen  in  hundreds,  creating  some  confusion  in  the 
view ;  but  all  these  must  soon  disappear,  in  that  climate. 

Towards  the  southward,  however,  Mark  found  the  objects 
of  his  greatest  wonder  and  admiration.  By  the  time  he 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  169 

reached  the  apex  of  the  rock,  the  smoke  in  that  quarter 
of  the  horizon  had,  in  a  great  measure,  risen  from  the  sea ; 
though  a  column  of  it  continued  to  ascend  towards  a  vast, 
dun-coloured  cloud  that  overhung  the  place.  To  Mark's 
astonishment  he  had  seen  some  dark,  dense  body  first 
looming  through  the  rising  vapour.  When  the  last  was 
sufficiently  removed,  a  high,  ragged  mountain  became 
distinctly  visible.  He  thought  it  arose  at  least  a  thousand 
feet  above  the  ocean,  and  that  it  could  not  be  less  than  a 
league  in  extent.  This  exhibition  of  the  power  of  nature 
filled  the  young  man's  soul  with  adoration  and  reverence 
for  the  mighty  Being  that  could  set  such  elements  at  work. 
It  did  not  alarm  him,  but  rather  tended  to  quiet  his  long 
ings  to  quit  the  place ;  for  he  who  lives  amid  such  scenes 
feels  that  he  is  so  much  nearer  to  the  arm  of  God  than 
those  who  dwell  in  uniform  security,  as  to  think  less  of 
ordinary  advantages  than  is  common. 

Mark  knew  that  there  must  have  been  a  dislocation  of 
the  rocks,  to  produce  such  a  change  as  that  he  saw  to  the 
southward.  It  was  well  for  him  it  occurred  there  at  a  dis 
tance,  as  he  then  thought,  of  ten  or  fifteen  miles  from  the 
Reef,  though  in  truth  it  was  at  quite  fifty,  instead  of  hap 
pening  beneath  him.  It  was  possible,  however,  for  one 
to  have  been  on  the  top  of  that  mountain,  and  to  have 
lived  through  the  late  change,  could  the  lungs  of  man  have 
breathed  the  atmosphere.  Not  far  from  this  mountain  a 
column  of  smoke  rose  out  of  the  sea,  and  Mark  fancied 
that,  at  moments,  he  could  discern  the  summit  of  an  active 
crater  at  its  base. 

After  gazing  at  these  astonishing  changes  for  a  long 
time,  our  young  man  descended  from  the  height  and  re 
traced  his  steps  homeward.  Kitty  gladly  preceded  him, 
and  some  time  after  the  sun  had  set,  they  regained  the 
Reef.  About  a  mile  short  of  home,  Mark  passed  all  the 
hogs,  snugly  deposited  in  a  bed  of  mud,  where  they  had 
esconced  themselves  for  the  night,  as  one  draws  himself 
beneath  his  blanket. 


170  THE  CRATER; 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"All  things  in  common  nature  should  produce 
Without  sweat  or  endeavour :  treason,  felony, 
Sword,  pike,  gun,  or  need  of  any  engine 
Would  I  not  have ;  but  nature  should  bring  forth, 
Of  its  own  kind,  all  foizen,  all  abundance 
To  feed  my  innocent  people." 

Tempest. 

FOR  the  next  ten  days  Mark  Woolston  did  little  but  ex 
plore.  By  crossing  the  channel  around  the  Reef,  which 
he  had  named  the  'Armlet3  (the  young  man  often  talked 
to  himself),  he  reached  the  sea-wall,  and,  once  there,  he 
made  a  long  excursion  to  the  eastward.  He  now  walked 
dryshod  over  those  very  reefs  among  which  he  had  so  re 
cently  sailed  in  the  Bridget,  though  the  ship-channel  through 
which  he  and  Bob  had  brought  in  the  Rancocus  still  re 
mained.  The  two  buoys  that  had  marked  the  narrow  pas 
sage  were  found,  high  and  dry ;  and  the  anchor  of  the  ship, 
that  by  which  she  rode  after  beating  over  the  rocks  into 
deep  water,  was  to  be  seen  so  near  the  sur  hce,  that  the 
stock  could  be  reached  by  the  hand. 

There  was  little  difference  in  character  between  the 
newly-made  land  to  windward  and  that  which  Mark  had 
found  in  the  opposite  direction.  Large  pools,  or  lakes,  of 
salt  water,  deposits  of  mud  and  sand,  some  of  which  were 
of  considerable  extent  and  thickness,  sounds,  creeks,  and 
arms  of  the  sea,  with  here  and  there  a  hummock  of  rock 
that  rose  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  above  the  face  of  the  main 
body,  were  the  distinguishing  peculiarities.  For  two  days 
Mark  explored  in  this  direction,  or  to  windward,  reaching 
as  far  by  his  estimate  of  the  distance,  as  the  place  where 
he  had  bore  up  in  his  cruise  in  the  Bridget.  Finding  a 
great  many  obstacles  in  the  way,  channels,  mud,  &.C.,  he 
determined,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day,  to  return 
home,  get  a  stock  of  supplies,  and  come  out  in  the  boat, 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  171 

in  order  to  ascertain  if  he  could  not  now  reach  the  open 
water  to  windward. 

On  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day  after  the  earthquake, 
and  the  occurrence  of  the  mighty  change  that  had  altered 
the  whole  face  of  the  scene  around  him,  the  young  man 
got  under  way  in  the  Bridget.  He  shaped  his  course  to 
windward,  beating  out  of  the  Armlet  by  a  narrow  passage, 
that  carried  him  into  a  reach  that  stretched  away  for  several 
miles,  to  the  northward  and  eastward,  in  nearly  a  straight 
line.  This  passage,  or  sound,  was  about  half  a  mile  in 
width,  and  there  was  water  enough  in  nearly  all  parts  of  it 
to  float  the  largest  sized  vessel.  By  this  passage  the  poor 
hermit,  small  as  was  his  chance  of  ever  seeing  such  an 
event  occur,  hoped  it  might  be  possible  to  come  to  the 
very  side  of  the  Reef  in  a  ship. 

When  about  three  leagues  from  the  crater,  the  '  Hope 
Channel,'  as  Mark  named  this  long  and  direct  passage, 
divided  into  two,  one  trending  still  more  to  the  northward, 
running  nearly  due  north,  indeed,  while  the  other  might 
be  followed  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach.  Mark  named  the  rock  at  the  junction  '  Point 
Fork,'  arid  chose  the  latter  passage,  which  appeared  the 
most  promising,  and  the  wind  permitting  him  to  lay  through 
it.  The  Bridget  tacked  in  the  Forks,  therefore,  and  stood 
away  to  the  south-east,  pretty  close  to  the  wind.  Various 
other  channels  communicated  with  this  main  passage,  or 
the  Hope ;  and,  about  noon,  Mark  tacked  into  one  of  them, 
heading  about  north-east,  when  trimmed  up  sharp  to  do  so. 
The  water  was  deep,  and  at  first  the  passage  was  half  a 
mile  in  width ;  but  after  standing  along  it  for  a  mile  or  two, 
it  seemed  all  at  once  to  terminate  in  an  oval  basin,  that 
might  have  been  a  mile  in  its  largest  diameter,  and  which 
was  bounded  to  the  eastward  by  a  belt  of  rock  that  rose 
some  twenty  feet  above  the  water.  The  bottom  of  this 
basin  was  a  clear  beautiful  sand,  and  its  depth  of  water, 
on  sounding,  Mark  found  was  uniformly  about  eight  fa 
thoms.  A  more  safe  or  convenient  basin  for  the  anchorage 
of  ships  could  not  have  been  formed  by  the  art  of  man, 
had  there  been  an  entrance  to  it,  and  any  inducement  for 
them  to  come  there. 

Mark  had  beaten  about  *  Oval  Harbour,'  as  he  named 


THE   CRATER; 

the  place,  for  halt'  an  hour,  before  he  was  struck  by  the 
circumstance  that  the  even  character  of  its  surface  appeared 
to  be  a  little  disturbed  by  a  slight  undulation  which  seemed 
to  come  from  its  north-eastern  extremity.  Tacking  the 
Bridget,  he  stood  in  that  direction,  and  on  reaching  the 
place,  found  that  there  was  a  passage  through  the  rock  of 
about  a  hundred  yards  in  width.  The  wind  permitting, 
the  boat  shot  through  this  passage,  and  was  immediately 
heaving  and  setting  m  the  long  swells  of  the  open  ocean. 
At  first  Mark  was  startled  by  the  roar  of  the  waves  that 
plunged  into  the  caverns  of  the  rocks,  and  trembled  lest 
his  boat  might  be  hove  up  against  that  hard  and  iron-bound 
coast,  where  one  toss  would  shatter  his  little  craft  into 
splinters.  Too  steady  a  seaman,  however,  to  abandon  his 
object  unnecessarily,  he  stood  on,  and  soon  found  he  could 
weather  the  rocks  under  his  lee,  tacking  in  time.  After 
two  or  three  short  stretches  were  made,  Mark  found  him 
self  half  a  mile  to  windward  of  a  long  line,  or  coast,  of 
dark  rock,  that  rose  from  twenty  to  twenty-five  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  water,  and  beyond  all  question  in  the  open 
ocean.  He  hove-to  to  sound,  and  let  forty  fathoms  of  line 
out  without  reaching  bottom.  But  everywhere  to  leeward 
of  him  was  land,  or  rock ;  while  everywhere  to  windward, 
as  well  as  ahead  and  astern,  it  was  clear  water.  This, 
then,  was  the  eastern  limit  of  the  old  shoals,  now  converted 
into  dry  land.  Here  the  Rancocus  had,  unknown  to  her 
officers,  first  run  into  the  midst  of  these  shoals,  by  which 
she  had  ever  since  been  environed. 

It  was  not  easy  to  compute  the  precise  distance  from  the 
outlet  or  inlet  of  Oval  Harbour,  to  the  crater.  Mark 
thought  it  might  be  five-and-twenty  miles,  in  a  straight 
line,  judging  equally  by  the  eye,  and  the  time  he  had  been 
in  running  it.  The  Summit  was  not  to  be  seen,  however, 
any  more  than  the  masts  of  the  ship ;  though  the  distant 
Peak,  and  the  column  of  dark  smoke,  remained  in  sight, 
as  eternal  land-marks.  The  young  man  might  have  been 
an  hour  in  the  open  sea,  gradually  hauling  off  the  land,  in 
order  to  keep  clear  of  the  coast,  when  he  bethought  him 
of  returning.  It  required  a  good  deal  of  nerve  to  run  in 
towards  those  rocks,  under  all  the  circumstances  of  the 
case.  The  wind  blew  fresh,  so  much  indeed  as  to  induce 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  173 

Mark  to  reef,  but  there  must  always  be  a  heavy  swell  roll 
ing  in  upon  that  iron-bound  shore.  The  shock  of  such 
waves  expending  their  whole  force  on  perpendicular  rocks 
may  be  imagined  better  than  it  can  be  described.  There 
was  an  undying  roar  all  along  that  coast,  produced  by  these 
incessant  collisions  of  the  elements;  and  occasionally, 
when  a  sea  entered  a  cavern,  in  a  way  suddenly  to  expel 
its  air,  the  sound  resembled  that  which  some  huge  animal 
might  be  supposed  to  utter  in  its  agony,  or  its  anger.  Of 
course,  the  spray  was  flying  high,  and  the  entire  line  of 
black  rocks  was  white  with  its  particles. 

Mark  had  unwittingly  omitted  to  take  any  land-marks 
to  his  inlet,  or  strait.  He  had  no  other  means  of  finding 
it,  therefore,  than  to  discover  a  spot  in  which  the  line  of 
white  was  broken.  This  inlet,  however,  he  remembered 
did  not  open  at  right  angles  to  the  coast,  but  obliquely ; 
and  it  was  very  possible  to  be  within  a  hundred  yards  of 
it,  and  not  see  it.  This  fact  our  young  sailor  was  not  long 
in  ascertaining ;  for  standing  in  towards  the  point  where 
he  expected  to  find  the  entrance,  and  going  as  close  to  the 
shore  as  he  dared,  he  could  see  nothing  of  the  desired  pas 
sage.  For  an  hour  did  he  search,  passing  to  and  fro,  but 
without  success.  The  idea  of  remaining  out  in  the  open 
sea  for  the  night,  and  to  windward  of  such  an  inhospitable 
coast,  was  anything  but  pleasant  to  Mark,  and  he  deter 
mined  to  stand  to  the  northward,  now,  while  it  was  day, 
and  look  for  some  other  entrance. 

For  four  hours  did  Mark  Woolston  run  along  those  dark 
rocks,  whitened  only  by  the  spray  of  the  wide  ocean,  with 
out  perceiving  a  point  at  which  a  boat  might  even  land. 
As  he  was  now  running  off  the  wind,  and  had  turned  out 
his  reef,  he  supposed  he  must  have  gone  at  least  five-and- 
tvventy  miles,  if  not  thirty,  in  that  time ;  and  thus  had  he 
some  means  of  judging  of  the  extent  of  his  new  territories. 
About  five  in  the  afternoon  a  cape,  or  headland,  was 
reached,  when  the  coast  suddenly  trended  to  the  westward. 
This,  then,  was  the  north-eastern  angle  of  the  entire  for 
mation,  and  Mark  named  it  Cape  North-East.  The  boat 
was  now  jibed,  and  ran  off  west,  a  little  northerly,  for  an 
other  hour,  keeping  quite  close  in  to  the  coast,  which  was 
no  longer  dangerous  as  soon  as  the  Cape  wzis  doubled. 


174  THE  CRATER; 

The  seas  broke  upon  the  rocks,  as  a  matter  of  course ;  but 
there  being  a  lee,  it  was  only  under  the  power  of  the 
ceaseless  undulations  of  the  ocean.  Even  the  force  of  the 
wind  was  now  much  less  felt,  the  Bridget  carrying  whole 
sail  when  hauled  up,  as  Mark  placed  her  several  times,  in 
order  to  examine  apparent  inlets. 

It  was  getting  to  be  too  late  to  think  of  reaching  home 
that  night,  for  running  in  those  unknown  channels  after 
dark  was  not  a  desirable  course  for  an  explorer  to  adopt. 
Our  young  man,  therefore,  limited  his  search  to  some  place 
where  he  might  lie  until  the  return  of  light.  It  is  true, 
the  lee  formed  by  the  rocks  was  now  such  as  to  enable  him 
to  remain  outside,  with  safety,  until  morning ;  but  he  pre 
ferred  greatly  to  get  within  the  islands,  if  possible,  to  trust 
ing  himself,  while  asleep,  to  the  mercy  of  the  open  ocean. 
Just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  leaving  the  evening  cool  and 
pleasant,  after  the  warmth  of  an  exceedingly  hot  day,  the 
boat  doubled  a  piece  of  low  headland ;  and  Mark  had  half 
made  up  his  mind  to  get  under  its  lee,  and  heave  a  grapnel 
ashore,  in  order  to  ride  by  his  cable  during  the  approach 
ing  night,  when  an  opening  in  the  coast  greeted  his  eyes. 
It  was  just  as  he  doubled  the  cape.  This  opening  appeared 
to  be  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  width,  and  it  had  perfectly 
smooth  water,  a  half-gunshot  within  its  mouth.  The  helm 
was  put  down,  the  sheets  hauled  aft,  and  the  Bridget  luffed 
into  this  creek,  estuary,  sound,  or  harbour,  whichever  it 
might  prove  to  be.  For  twenty  minutes  did  Mark  stand 
on  through  this  passage,  when  suddenly  it  expanded  into 
a  basin,  or  bay,  of  considerable  extent.  This  was  at  a 
distance  of  about  a  league  within  the  coast.  This  bay  was 
a  league  long,  and  half  a  league  in  width,  the  boat  entering 
it  close  to  its  weather  side.  A  long  and  wide  sandy  beach 
offered  on  that  side,  and  the  young  man  stood  along  it  a 
short  distance,  until  the  sight  of  a  spring  induced  him  to 
put  his  helm  down.  The  boat  luffed  short  round,  and 
carne  gently  upon  the  beach.  A  grapnel  was  thrown  on 
the  sands,  and  Mark  leaped  ashore. 

The  water  proved  to  be  sweet,  cool,  and  every  way  deli 
cious.  This  was  at  least  the  twentieth  spring  which  had 
been  seen  that  day,  though  it  was  the  first  of  which  the 
waters  had  been  tasted.  This  new-born  beach  had  every 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  175 

appearance  of  having  been  exposed  to  the  air  a  thousand 
years.  The  sand  was  perfectly  clean,  and  of  a  bright 
golden  colour,  and  it  was  well  strewed  with  shells  of  the 
most  magnificent  colours  and  size.  The  odour  of  their 
late  tenants  alone  proclaimed  the  fact  of  their  recent  ship 
wreck.  This,  however,  was  an  evil  that  a  single  month 
would  repair ;  and  our  sailor  determined  to  make  another 
voyage  to  this  bay,  which  he  called  Shell  Bay,  in  order  to 
procure  some  of  its  treasures.  It  was  true  he  could  not 
place  them  before  the  delighted  eyes  of  Bridget,  but  he 
might  arrange  them  in  his  cabin,  and  fancy  that  she  was 
gazing  at  their  beauties.  After  drinking  at  the  spring, 
and  supping  on  the  rocks  above,  Mark  arranged  a  mattress, 
provided  for  that  purpose,  in  the  boat,  and  went  to  sleep. 

Early  next  morning  the  Bridget  was  again  under  way, 
but  not  until  her  owner  had  both  bathed  and  broken  his 
fast.  Bathe  he  did  every  morning  throughout  the  year, 
and  occasionally  at  night  also.  A  day  of  exertion  usually 
ended  with  a  bath,  as  did  a  night  of  sweet  repose  also.  In 
all  these  respects  no  one  could  be  more  fortunate.  From 
the  first,  food  had  been  abundant ;  and  now  he  possessed 
it  in  superfluity,  including  the  wants  of  all  dependent  on 
him.  Of  clothes,  also,  he  had  an  inexhaustible  supply,  a 
small  portion  of  the  cargo  consisting  of  coarse  cotton 
jackets  and  trousers,  with  which  to  purchase  sandal-wood. 
To  these  means,  delicious  water  was  now  added  in  inex 
haustible  quantities.  The  late  changes  had  given  to  Mark's 
possession  territory  sufficient  to  occupy  him  months,  even 
in  exploring  it  thoroughly,  as  it  was  his  purpose  to  do. 
God  was  there,  also,  as  he  is  everywhere.  This  our  se 
cluded  man  found  to  be  a  most  precious  consolation. 
Again  and  again,  each  day,  was  he  now  in  the  practice  of 
communing  in  spirit,  directly  with  his  Creator;  not  in  cold 
and  unmeaning  forms  and  commonplaces,  but  with  such 
yearning  of  the  soul,  and  such  feelings  of  love  and  rever 
ence,  as  an  active  and  living  faith  can  alone,  by  the  aid 
of  the  Divine  Spirit,  awaken  in  the  human  breast. 

After  crossing  Shell  Bay,  the  Bridget  continued  on  for 
a  couple  of  hours,  running  south,  westerly,  through  a  pas* 
sage  of  a  good  width,  until  it  met  another  channel,  at  a 
point  which  Mark  at  once  recognized  as  the  Forks.  When 


176  THE  CRATER; 

at  Point  Fork,  he  had  only  to  follow  the  track  he  had 
come  the  previous  day,  in  order  to  arrive  at  the  Reef. 
The  crater  could  be  seen  from  the  Forks,  and  there  was 
consequently  a  beacon  in  sight,  to  direct  the  adventurer, 
had  he  wanted  such  assistance ;  which  he  did  not,  how 
ever,  since  he  now  recognized  objects  perfectly  well  as  he 
advanced.  About  ten  o'clock  he  ran  alongside  of  the  ship, 
where  he  found  everything  as  he  had  left  it.  Lighting  the 
fire,  he  put  on  food  sufficient  to  last  him  for  another  cruise, 
and  then  went  up  into  the  cross-trees  in  order  to  take  a 
better  look  than  he  had  yet  obtained,  of  the  state  of  things 
to  the  southward. 

By  this  time  the  vast  murky  cloud  that  had  so  long  over 
hung  the  new  outlet  of  the  volcano,  was  dispersed.  It  was 
succeeded  by  one  of  ordinary  size,  in  which  the  thread  of 
smoke  that  arose  from  the  crater,  terminated.  Of  course 
the  surrounding  atmosphere  was  clear,  and  nothing  but 
distance  obstructed  the  view.  The  Peak  was  indeed  a 
sublime  sight,  issuing,  as  it  did,  from  the  ocean  without 
any  relief.  Mark  now  began  to  think  he  had  miscalcu 
lated  its  height,  and  that  it  might  be  two  thousand  feet, 
instead  of  one,  above  the  water.  There  it  was,  in  all  its 
glory,  blue  and  misty,  but  ragged  and  noble.  The  crater 
was  clearly  many  miles  beyond  it,  the  young  man  being 
satisfied,  after  this  look,  that  he  had  not  yet  seen  its  sum 
mit.  He  also  increased  his  distance  from  Vulcan's  Peak, 
as  he  named  the  mountain,  to  ten  leagues,  at  least.  After 
sitting  in  the  cross-trees  for  fully  an  hour,  gazing  at  this 
height  with  as  much  pleasure  as  the  connoisseur  ever  stu 
died  picture,  or  statue,  the  young  man  determined  to  at 
tempt  a  voyage  to  that  place,  in  the  Bridget.  To  him, 
such  an  expedition  had  the  charm  of  the  novelty  and 
change  which  a  journey  from  country  to  town  could  bring 
to  the  wearied  worldling,  who  sighed  for  the  enjoyment 
of  his  old  haunts,  after  a  season  passed  in  the  ennui  of  his 
country-house.  It  is  true,  great  novelties  had  been  pre 
sented  to  our  solitary  youth,  by  the  great  changes  wrought 
immediately  in  his  neighbourhood,  and  they  had  now  kept 
him  for  a  week  in  a  condition  of  high  excitement;  but 
nothing  they  presented  could  equal  the  interest  he  felt  in 
that  distant  mountain,  which  had  arisen  so  suddenly  in  a 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  177 

horizon  that  he  had  been  accustomed  to  see  bare  of  any 
object  but  clouds,  for  near  eighteen  months. 

That  afternoon  Mark  made  all  his  preparations  for  a 
voyage  that  he  felt  might  be  one  of  great  moment  to  him. 
All  the  symptoms  of  convulsions  in  the  earth,  however, 
had  ceased  ;  even  the  rumbling  sounds  which  he  had  heard, 
or  imagined,  in  the  stillness  of  the  night,  being  no  longer 
audible.  From  that  source,  therefore,  he  had  no  great 
apprehensions  of  danger ;  though  there  was  a  sort  of  dread 
majesty  in  the  exhibition  of  the  power  of  nature  that  he 
had  so  lately  witnessed,  which  disposed  him  to  approach 
the  scene  of  its  greatest  effort  with  secret  awe.  So  much 
did  he  think  of  the  morrow  and  its  possible  consequences, 
that  he  did  not  get  asleep  for  two  or  three  hours,  though 
he  awoke  in  the  morning  unconscious  of  any  want  of  rest. 
An  hour  later,  he  was  in  his  boat,  and  under  way. 

Mark  had  now  to  steer  in  an  entirely  new  direction, 
believing,  from  what  he  had  seen  while  aloft  the  day  be 
fore,  that  he  could  make  his  way  out  into  the  open  ocean 
by  proceeding  a  due  south  course.  In  order  to  do  this, 
and  to  get  into  the  most  promising-looking  channel  in  that 
direction,  he  was  obliged  to  pass  through  the  narrow  strait 
that  separated  the  Reef  from  the  large  range  of  rock  over 
which  he  had  roamed  the  day  succeeding  the  earthquake. 
Of  course,  the  bridge  was  removed,  in  order  to  allow  the 
boat's  mast  to  pass ;  but  for  this,  Mark  ciid  not  care.  He 
had  seen  his  stock  the  previous  evening,  and  saw  that  it 
wanted  for  nothing.  Even  the  fowls  had  gone  across  to 
the  new  territory,  on  exploring  expeditions;  and  Kitty 
herself  had  left  her  sweet  pastures  on  the  Summit,  to  see 
of  what  the  world  was  made  beyond  her  old  range.  It  is 
true  she  had  made  one  journey  in  that  quarter,  in  the  com 
pany  of  her  master ;  but,  one  journey  no  more  satisfied  her 
than  it  would  have  satisfied  the  curiosity  of  any  other 
female. 

After  passing  the  bridge,  the  boat  entered  a  long  narrow 
reach,  that  extended  at  least  two  leagues,  in  nearly  a  direct 
line  towards  Vulcan's  Peak.  As  it  approached  the  end  of 
this  piece  of  water,  Mark  saw  that  he  must  enter  a  bay  of 
considerable  extent;  one,  indeed,  that  was  much  larger 
lhan  any  he  had  ,yet  seen  in  his  island,  or,  to  speak  more 


178  THE   CRATER; 

accurately,  his  group  of  islands.  On  one  side  of  this  bay 
appeared  a  large  piece  of  level  land,  or  a  plain,  which 
Mark  supposed  might  cover  one  or  two  thousand  acres 
Its  colour  was  so  different  from  anything  he  had  yet  seen, 
that  our  young  man  was  induced  to  land,  and  to  walk  a 
short  distance  to  examine  it.  On  reaching  its  margin,  it 
was  found  to  be  a  very  shallow  basin,  of  which  the  bottom, 
was  mud,  with  a  foot  or  two  of  salt  water  still  remaining, 
and  in  which  sea-weed,  some  ten  or  twelve  inches  in  thick 
ness,  was  floating.  It  was  almost  possible  for  Mark  to 
walk  on  this  weed,  the  green  appearance  of  which  induced 
him  to  name  the  place  the  Prairie.  Such  a  collection  of 
weed  could  only  have  been  owing  to  the  currents,  which 
must  have  brought  it  into  this  basin,  where  it  was  probably 
retained  even  previously  to  the  late  eruption.  The  pre 
sence  of  the  deposit  of  mud,  as  well  as  the  height  of  the 
surrounding  rocks,  many  of  which  were  doubtless  out  of 
water  previously  to  the  phenomenon,  went  to  corroborate 
this  opinion. 

After  working  her  way  through  a  great  many  channels, 
some  wide  and  some  narrow,  some  true  and  some  false, 
the  Bridget  reached  the  southern  verge  of  the  group,  about 
noon.  Mark  then  supposed  himself  to  be  quite  twenty 
miles  from  the  Reef,  and  the  Peak  appeared  very  little 
nearer  than  when  he  left  it.  This  startled  him  on  the 
score  of  distance;  and,  after  meditating  on  all  his  chances, 
the  young  man  determined  to  pass  the  remainder  of  that 
day  where  he  was,  in  order  to  put  to  sea  with  as  much 
daylight  before  him  as  possible.  He  desired  also  to  ex 
plore  the  coast  and  islands  in  that  vicinity,  in  order  to 
complete  his  survey  of  the  cluster.  He  looked  for  a  con 
venient  place  to  anchor  his  boat,  accordingly,  ate  his  din 
ner,  and  set  out  on  foot  to  explore,  armed  as  usual  with  a 
fowling-piece. 

In  the  first  place,  an  outlet  to  the  sea  very  different  from 
that  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  group,  was  found  here,  on 
its  southern.  The  channel  opened  into  a  bay  of  some  size, 
with  an  arm  of  rock  reaching  well  off  on  the  weather  side, 
so  that  no  broken  water  was  encountered  in  passing  into 
or  out  of  it,  provided  one  kept  sufficiently  clear  of  the 
point  itsolf.  As  there  was  abundance  of  room,  Mark  saw 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  179 

he  should  have  no  difficulty  in  getting  out  into  open  water, 
here,  or  in  getting  back  again.  What  was  more,  the  arm, 
or  promontory  of  rock  just  mentioned,  had  a  hummock 
near  a  hundred  feet  in  height  on  its  extremity,  that  an 
swered  admirably  for  a  land-mark.  Most  of  this  hummock 
must  have  been  above  water  previously  to  the  late  erup 
tion,  though  it  appeared  to  our  explorer,  that  all  the  visible 
land,  as  he  proceeded  south,  was  lifted  higher  and  on  a 
gradually-increasing  scale,  as  if  the  eruption  had  exerted 
its  force  at  a  certain  point,  the  new  crater  for  instance, 
and  raised  the  earth  to  the  northward  of  that  point,  on  an 
inclined  plane.  This  might  account,  in  a  measure,  for  the 
altitude  of  the  Peak,  which  was  near  the  great  crevice  that 
must  have  been  left  somewhere,  unless  materials  on  its  op 
posite  side  had  fallen  to  fill  it  up  again.  Most  of  these 
views  were  merely  speculative,  though  the  fact  of  the  greater 
elevation  of  all  the  rooks,  in  this  part  of  the  group,  over 
those  further  north,  was  beyond  dispute.  Thus  the  coast, 
here,  was  generally  fifty  or  eighty  feet  high ;  whereas,  at 
the  Reef,  even  now,  the  surface  of  the  common  rock  was 
not  much  more  than  twenty  feet  above  the  water.  The 
rise  seemed  to  be  gradual,  moreover,  which  certainly  fa 
voured  this  theory. 

As  a  great  deal  of  sand  and  mud  had  been  brought  up 
by  the  eruption,  there  was  no  want  of  fresh  water.  Mark 
found  even  a  little  brook,  of  as  perfectly  sweet  a  stream  as 
he  had  ever  tasted  in  America,  running  into  the  little  har 
bour  where  he  had  secured  the  boat.  He  followed  this 
stream  two  miles,  ere  he  reached  its  source,  or  sources; 
for  it  came  from  at  least  a  dozen  copious  springs,  that 
poured  their  tribute  from  a  bed  of  clean  sand  several  miles 
in  length,  and  which  had  every  sign  of  having  been  bare 
for  ages.  In  saying  this,  however,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed 
that  the  signs,  as  to  time,  were  very  apparent  anywhere. 
Lava,  known  to  have  been  ejected  from  the  bowels  of  the 
earth  thousands  of  years,  has  just  as  fresh  an  appearance, 
to  the  ordinary  observer,  as  that  which  was  thrown  out  ten 
years  ago;  and,  had  it  not  been  for  the  deposits  of  moist 
mud,  the  remains  of  fish,  sea-weed  that  was  still  unde- 
cayed,  pools  of  salt  water,  and  a  few  other  peculiarities  of 
the  same  sort,  Mark  would  have  been  puzzled  to  find  any 


180  THE  CRATER; 

difference  between  the  rocks  recently  thrown  up,  and  those 
which  were  formerly  exposed  to  the  air.  Even  the  mud 
was  fast  changing  its  appearance,  cracking  and  drying 
under  the  sun  of  the  tropics.  In  a  month  or  two,  should 
as  much  rain  as  usual  fall,  it  was  probable  the  sea-weed 
would  be  far  gone  in  decay. 

It  was  still  early  when  our  adventurer  kneeled  on  the 
sand,  near  his  boat,  to  hold  his  last  direct  communication 
with  his  Creator,  ere  he  slept.  Those  communications 
were  now  quite  frequent  with  Mark,  it  being  no  unusual 
thing  for  him  to  hold  them  when  sailing  in  his  boat,  on  the 
deck  of  the  ship,  or  in  the  soft  salubrious  air  of  the  Sum 
mit.  He  slept  none  the  less  soundly  for  having  com 
mended  his  soul  to  God,  asking  support  against  tempta 
tions,  and  forgiveness  for  past  sins.  These  prayers  were 
usually  very  short.  More  than  half  the  time  they  were 
expressed  in  the  compendious  and  beautiful  words  given 
to  man  by  Christ  himself,  the  model  and  substance  of  all 
petitions  of  this  nature.  But  the  words  were  devoutly  ut 
tered,  the  heart  keeping  even  pace  with  them,  and  the  soul 
fully  submitting  to  their  influence. 

Mark  arose,  next  morning,  two  hours  before  the  light 
appeared,  and  at  once  left  the  group.  Time  was  now  im 
portant  to  him ;  for,  while  he  anticipated  the  possibility  of 
remaining  under  the  lee  of  the  mountain  during  the  suc 
ceeding  night,  he  also  anticipated  the  possibility  of  being 
compelled  to  return.  In  a  favourable  time,  with  the  wind 
a  little  free,  five  knots  in  the  hour  was  about  the  maximum 
of  the  boat's  rate  of  sailing,  though  it  was  affected  by  the 
greater  or  less  height  of  the  sea  that  was  on.  When  the 
waves  ran  heavily,  the  Bridget's  low  sails  got  becalmed 
in  the  troughs,  and  she  consequently  lost  much  of  her  way. 
On  the  whole,  however,  five  knots  might  be  set  down  as 
her  average  speed,  under  the  pressure  of  the  ordinary 
trades,  and  with  whole  canvas,  and  a  little  off  the  wind. 
Close-hauled,  she  scarcely  made  more  than  three ;  while, 
with  the  wind  on  the  quarter,  she  often  went  seven,  espe 
cially  in  smooth  water. 

The  course  steered  was  about  a  point  to  the  westward 
of  south,  the  boat  running  altogether  by  compass,  for  the 
first  two  hours,  At  the  end  of  that  time  day  returned 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  131 

and  the  dark,  frowning  Peak  itself  became  visible.  The 
sun  had  no  sooner  risen,  than  Mark  felt  satisfied  with  his 
boat's  performance.  Objects  began  to  come  out  of  'he 
mass  of  the  mountain,  which  no  longer  appeared  a  pile  of 
dark  outline,  without  detail.  He  expected  this,  and  uas 
even  disappointed  that  his  eyes  could  not  command  more, 
for  he  now  saw  that  he  had  materially  underrated  the  dis 
tance  between  the  crater  and  the  Peak,  which  must  be 
nearer  sixty  than  fifty  miles.  The  channel  between  the 
group  and  this  isolated  mass  was,  at  least,  twelve  leagues 
in  width.  These  twelve  leagues  were  now  to  be  run,  und 
our  young  navigator  thought  he  had  made  fully  three  ^f 
them,  when  light  returned. 

From  that  moment  every  mile  made  a  sensible  difference 
in  the  face  of  the  mountain.  Light  and  shadow  first  be 
came  visible;  then  ravines,  cliffs,  and  colours,  came  into 
the  view.  Each  league  that  he  advanced  increased  Mar  I'r 
admiration  and  awe ;  and  by  the  time  that  the  boat  was 
on  the  last  of  those  leagues  which  had  appeared  so  long, 
he  began  to  have  a  more  accurate  idea  of  the  sublime  na 
ture  of  the  phenomenon  that  had  been  wrought  so  near 
him.  Vulcan's  Peak,  as  an  island,  could  not  be  less  than 
eight  or  nine  miles  in  length,  though  its  breadth  did  not 
much  exceed  two.  Running  north  and  south,  it  offered 
its  narrow  side  to  the  group  of  the  crater,  which  had  de 
ceived  its  solitary  observer.  Yes!  of  the  millions  on  earth, 
Mark  Woolston,  alone,  had  been  so  situated  as  to  become 
a  witness  of  this  grand  display  of  the  powers  of  the  ele 
ments.  Yet,  what  was  this  in  comparison  with  the  thou 
sand  vast  globes  that  were  rolling  about  in  space,  objects 
so  familiar  as  to  be  seen  daily  and  nightly  without  raising 
a  thought,  in  the  minds  of  many,  from  the  created  to  the 
creator  ?  Even  these  globes  come  and  go,  and  men  remain 
indifferent  to  the  mighty  change  ! 

The  wind  had  been  fresh  in  crossing  the  strait,  and 
Mark  was  not  sorry  when  his  pigmy  boat  came  under  the 
shadow  of  the  vast  cliffs  which  formed  the  northern  ex 
tremity  of  the  Peak.  When  still  a  mile  distant,  he  thought 
he  was  close  on  the  rocks ;  nor  did  he  get  a  perfectly  true 
idea  of  the  scale  on  which  this  rare  mountain  had  been 
formed  until  running  along  at  its  base,  within  a  hund  ed 
16 


182  THE  CRATER; 

yards  of  its  rocks.  Coming  in  to  leeward,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  Mark  found  comparatively  smooth  water,  though 
the  unceasing  heaving  and  setting  of  the  ocean  rendered 
it  a  little  hazardous  to  go  nearer  to  the  shore.  For  some 
time  our  explorer  was  fearful  he  should  not  be  able  to  land 
at  all ;  and  he  was  actually  thinking  of  putting  about,  to 
make  the  best  of  his  way  back,  while  light  remained  to  do 
so,  when  he  came  off  a  place  that  seemed  fitted  by  art, 
rather  than  by  nature,  to  meet  his  wishes.  A  narrow 
opening  appeared  between  two  cliffs,  of  about  equal  height, 
or  some  hundred  feet  in  elevation,  one  of  which  extended 
further  into  the  ocean  than  its  neighbour.  The  water 
being  quite  smooth  in  this  inlet,  Mark  ventured  to  enter 
it,  the  wind  favouring  his  advance.  On  passing  this  gate 
way,  he  found  himself  nearly  becalmed,  in  a  basin  that 
might  be  a  hundred  yards  in  diameter,  which  was  not  only 
surrounded  by  a  sandy  beach,  but  which  had  also-a  sandy 
bottom.  The  water  was  several  fathoms  deep,  and  it  was 
very  easy  to  run  the  bows  of  the  boat  anywhere  on  the 
beach.  This  was  done,  the  sails  were  furled,  and  Mark 
sprang  ashore,  taking  the  grapnel  with  him.  Like  Colum 
bus,  he  knelt  on  the  sands,  and  returned  his  thanks  to 
God. 

Not  only  did  a  ravine  open  from  this  basin,  winding  its 
way  up  the  entire  ascent,  but  a  copious  stream  of  water 
ran  through  it,  foaming  and  roaring  amid  its  glens.  At 
first,  Mark  supposed  this  was  sea-water,  still  finding  its 
way  from  some  lake  on  the  Peak;  but,  on  tasting  it,  he 
found  it  was  perfectly  sweet.  Provided  with  his  gun,  and 
carrying  his  pack,  our  young  man  entered  this  ravine,  and 
following  the  course  of  the  brook,  he  at  once  commenced 
an  ascent.  The  route  was  difficult  only  in  the  labour  of 
moving  upwards,  and  by  no  means  as  difficult  in  that  as 
he  had  expected  to  find  it.  It  was,  nevertheless,  fortunate 
that  this  climbing  was  to  be  done  in  the  shade,  the  sun 
seldom  penetrating  into  those  cool  and  somewhat  damp 
crevices  through  which  the  brook  found  its  way. 

Notwithstanding  his  great  activity,  Mark  Woolston  was 
jast  an  hour  in  ascending  to  the  Peak.  In  no  place  had 
he  found  the  path  difficult,  though  almost  always  upward; 
but  he  believed  he  had  walked  more  than  two  miles  before 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  183 

he  came  out  on  level  ground.  When  he  had  got  up  about 
three-fourths  of  the  way,  the  appearances  of  things  around, 
him  suddenly  changed.  Although  the  rock  itself  looked 
no  older  than  that  below,  it  had,  occasionally,  a  covering 
that  clearly  could  never  have  emerged  from  the  sea  within 
the  last  few  days.  From  that  point  everything  denoted  an 
older  existence  in  the  air,  from  which  our  young  man  in 
ferred  that  the  summit  of  Vulcan's  Peak  had  been  an  island 
long  prior  to  the  late  eruption.  Every  foot  he  advanced 
confirmed  this  opinion,  and  the  conclusion  was  that  the 
ancient  island  had  lain  too  low  to  be  visible  to  one  on  the 
Reef. 

An  exclamation  of  delight  escaped  from  our  explorer, 
as  he  suddenly  came  out  on  the  broken  plain  of  the  Peak. 
It  was  not  absolutely  covered,  but  was  richly  garnished  with 
wood  ;  cocoa-nut,  bread-fruits,  and  other  tropical  trees  ;  and 
it  was  delightfully  verdant  with  young  grasses.  The  latter 
were  still  wet  with  a  recent  shower  that  Mark  had  seen 
pass  over  the  mountain,  while  standing  for  the  island ;  and 
on  examining  them  more  closely,  the  traces  of  the  former 
shower  of  volcanic  ashes  were  yet  to  be  seen.  The  warmth 
in  the  sun,  after  so  sharp  a  walk,  caused  the  young  man 
to  plunge  into  the  nearest  grove,  where  he  had  no  diffi 
culty  in  helping  himself  to  as  many  cocoa-nuts,  fresh  from 
the  trees,  as  a  thousand  men  could  have  consumed.  Every 
one  has  heard  of  the  delicious  beverage  that  the  milk  of 
the  cocoa-nut,  and  of  the  delicious  food  that  its  pulp  fur 
nishes,  when  each  is  taken  from  the  fruit  before  it  hardens. 
How  these  trees  came  there,  Mark  did  not  know.  The 
common  theory  is  that  birds  convey  the  seeds  from  island 
to  island;  though  some  suppose  that  the  earth  contains  the 
elements  of  all  vegetation,  and  that  this  or  that  is  quick 
ened,  as  particular  influences  are  brought  to  bear  by  means 
of  climate  and  other  agents. 

After  resting  himself  for  an  hour  in  that  delicious  grove, 
Mark  began  to  roam  around  the  plain,  to  get  an  idea  of  its 
beauties  and  extent.  The  former  were  inexhaustible,  of 
fering  every  variety  of  landscape,  from  the  bold  and  mag 
nificent  to  the  soft  and  bewitching.  There  were  birds 
innumerable,  of  the  most  brilliant  plumage,  and  some  that 
Mark  imagined  must  be  good  to  eat.  In  particular  did  lie 


184  THE  CRATER; 

observe  an  immense  number  of  a  very  small  sort  that  were 
constantly  pecking  at  a  wild  fig,  of  which  there  was  a  grove 
of  considerable  extent.  The  fig,  itself,  he  did  not  find  as 
palatable  as  he  had  hoped,  though  it  was  refreshing,  and 
served  to  vary  the  diet;  but  the  bird  struck  him  to  be  of 
the  same  kind  as  the  celebrated  reed-bird,  of  the  Philadel 
phia  market,  which  we  suppose  to  be  much  the  same  as 
the  beccajichi  of  Italy.  Being  provided  with  mustard-seed 
shot,  Mark  loaded  his  piece  properly,  and  killed  at  least 
twenty  of  these  little  creatures  at  one  discharge.  After 
cleaning  them,  he  struck  a  light  by  means  of  the  pan  and 
some  powder,  and  kindled  a  fire.  Here  was  wood,  too,  in 
any  quantity,  an  article  of  which  he  had  feared  in  time  he 
might  be  in  want,  and  which  he  had  already  begun  to  hus 
band,  though  used  only  in  his  simple  cookery.  Spitting 
half-a-dozen  of  the  birds,  they  were  soon  roasted.  At  the 
same  time  he  roasted  a  bunch  of  plantain,  and,  being  pro 
vided  with  pepper  and  salt  in  his  pack,  as  well  as  with 
some  pilot-bread,  and  a  pint-bottle  of  rum,  we  are  almost 
ashamed  to  relate  how  our  young  explorer  dined.  Nothing 
was  wanting  to  such  a  meal  but  the  sweets  of  social  con 
verse.  Mark  fancied,  as  he  sat  enjoying  that  solitary  re 
past,  so  delicious  of  itself,  and  which  was  just  enough 
sweetened  with  toil  to  render  it  every  way  acceptable,  that 
he  could  gladly  give  up  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  for  the 
enjoyment  of  a  paradise  like  that  before  him,  with  Bridget 
for  his  Eve. 

The  elevation  of  the  mountain  rendered  the  air  far  more 
grateful  and  cool  than  he  was  accustomed  to  find  it,  at 
mid-summer,  down  on  the  Reef,  and  the  young  man  was 
in  a  sort  of  gentle  intoxication  while  breathing  it.  Then 
it  was  that  he  most  longed  for  a  companion,  though  little 
did  he  imagine  how  near  he  was  to  some  of  his  species,  at 
that  very  moment ;  and  how  soon  that,  the  dearest  wish  of 
his  heart,  was  to  be  met  by  an  adventure  altogether  so 
unexpected  to  him,  that  we  must  commence  a  new  chapter, 
in  order  to  relate  it. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  1S5 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

u  The  merry  homes  of  England  ! 

Around  their  hearths  by  night, 
What  gladsome  looks  of  household  love 

Meet  in  the  ruddy  light ! 
There  woman's  voice  flows  forth  in  song, 

Or  childhood's  tale  is  told, 
Or  lips  move  tunefully  along 
Some  glorious  page  of  old." 

MRS.  HEMAWS. 

THE  peak,  or  highest  part  of  the  island,  was  at  its  north 
ern  extremity,  and  within  two  miles  of  the  grove  in  which 
Mark  Woolston  had  eaten  his  dinner.  Unlike  most  of  the 
plain,  it  had  no  woods  whatever,  but  rising  somewhat  ab 
ruptly  to  a  considerable  elevation,  it  was  naked  of  eve:y- 
thing  but  grass.  On  the  peak  itself,  there  was  very  lit:/e 
of  the  last  even,  and  it  was  obvious  that  it  must  command 
a  full  view  of  the  whole  plain  of  the  island,  as  well  as  of 
the  surrounding  sea,  for  a  wide  distance.  Resuming  his 
pack,  our  young  adventurer,  greatly  refreshed  by  the  deli 
cious  repast  he  had  just  made,  left  the  pleasant  grove  »n 
which  he  had  first  rested,  to  undertake  this  somewhat  sha  p 
acclivity.  He  was  not  long  in  effecting  it,  however,  stan  3- 
ing  on  the  highest  point  of  his  new  discovery  within  an 
hour  after  he  had  commenced  its  ascent. 

Here,  Mark  found  all  his  expectations  realized  touching 
the  character  of  the  view.  The  whole  plain  of  the  island, 
with  the  exceptions  of  the  covers  made  by  intervening 
woods,  lay  spread  before  him  like  a  map.  All  its  beauties, 
its  shades,  its  fruits,  and  its  verdant  glades,  were  placed 
beneath  his  eye,  as  if  purposely  to  delight  him  with  tht^r 
glories.  A  more  enchanting  rural  scene  the  young  man 
had  never  beheld,  the  island  having  so  much  the  air  of 
cultivation  and  art  about  it,  that  he  expected,  at  each  in 
stant,  to  see  bodies  of  men  running  across  its  surfaee.  He 
16* 


186  THE  CRATER; 

carried  the  best  glass  of  the  Rancocus  with  him,  in  al  his 
excursions,  not  knowing  at  what  moment  Providence  might 
bring  a  vessel  in  sight,  and  he  had  it  now  slung  from  his 
shoulders.  With  this  glass,  therefore,  was  every  part  of 
the  visible  surface  of 'the  island  swept,  in  anxious  and 
almost  alarmed  search  for  the  abodes  of  inhabitants.  No 
thing  of  this  sort,  however,  could  be  discovered.  The 
island  was  unquestionably  without  a  human  being,  our 
young  man  alone  excepted.  Nor  could  he  see  any  trace 
of  beast,  reptile,  or  of  any  animal  but  birds.  Creatures 
gifted  with  wings  had  been  able  to  reach  that  little  para 
dise  ;  but  to  all  others,  since  it  first  arose  from  the  sea, 
had  it  probably  beee  unapproached,  if  not  unapproachable, 
until  that  day.  It  appeared  to  be  the  very  Elysium  of 
Birds ! 

Mark  next  examined  the  peak  itself.  There  was  a  vast 
deposit  of  very  ancient  guano  on  it,  the  washings  of  which 
for  ages,  had  doubtless  largely  contributed  to  the  great 
fertility  of  the  plain  below.  A  stream  of  more  size  than 
one  would  expect  to  find  on  so  small  an  island,  meandered 
through  the  plain,  and  could  be  traced  to  a  very  copious 
spring  that  burst  from  the  earth  at  the  base  of  the  peak. 
Ample  as  this  spring  was,  however,  it  could  never  of  itself 
have  supplied  the  water  of  the  brook,  or  rivulet,  which 
received  the  contributions  of  some  fifty  other  springs,  that 
reached  it  in  rills,  as  it  wound  its  way  down  the  gently 
inclined  plane  of  the  island.  At  one  point,  about  two 
leagues  from  the  Peak,  there  was  actually  a  little  lake  visi 
ble,  and  Mark  could  even  trace  its  outlet,  winding  its  way 
beyond  it.  He  supposed  that  the  surplus  tumbled  into  the 
sea  in  a  cascade. 

It  will  readily  be  imagined  that  our  young  man  turned 
his  glass  to  the  northward,  in  search  of  the  group  he  had 
left  that  morning,  with  a  most  lively  interest.  It  was  easy 
enough  to  see  it  from  the  great  elevation  at  which  he  was 
now  placed.  There  it  lay,  stretched  far  and  wide,  extend 
ing  nearly  a  degree  of  latitude,  north  and  south,  and  an 
other  of  longitude,  east  and  west,  most  truly  resembling  a 
vast  dark-looking  map,  spread  upon  the  face  of  the  waters 
for  his  special  examination.  It  reminded  Mark  of  the 
moon,  with  its  ragged  outlines  of  imaginary  continents,  aa 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  187 

seen  by  the  naked  eye,  while  the  island  he  was  now  on,  bore 
a  fancied  resemblance  to  the  same  object  viewed  through  a 
telescope ;  not  that  it  had  the  look  of  molten  silver  which 
is  observed  in  the  earth's  satellite,  but  that  it  appeared 
gloriously  bright  and  brilliant.  Mark  could  easily  see 
many  of  the  sheets  of  water  that  were  to  be  found  among 
the  rocks,  though  his  naked  eye  could  distinguish  neither 
crater  nor  ship.  By  the  aid  of  the  glass,  however,  the  first 
was  to  be  seen,  though  the  distance  was  too  great  to  leave 
the  poor  deserted  Rancocus  visible,  even  with  the  assist 
ance  of  magnifying-glasses. 

When  he  had  taken  a  good  look  at  his  old  possessions, 
Mark  made  a  sweep  of  the  horizon  with  the  glass,  in 
order  to  ascertain  if  any  other  land  were  visible,  from  the 
great  elevation  on  which  he  now  stood.  While  arranging 
the  focus  of  the  instrument,  an  object  first  met  his  eye  that 
caused  his  heart  almost  to  leap  into  his  mouth.  Land  was 
looming  up,  in  the  western  board,  so  distinctly  as  to  admit 
of  no  cavil  about  its  presence.  It  was  an  island,  moun 
tainous,  and  Mark  supposed  it  must  be  fully  a  hundred 
miles  distant.  Still  it  was  land,  and  strange  land,  and 
might  prove  to  be  the  abode  of  human  beings.  The  glass 
told  him  very  little  more  than  his  eye,  though  he  could 
discern  a  mountainous  form  through  it,  and  saw  that  it 
was  an  island  of  no  great  size.  Beyond  this  mountain^ 
again,  the  young  man  fancied  that  he  could  detect  the 
haze  of  more  land ;  but,  if  he  did,  it  was  too  low,  too  dis 
tant,  and  too  indistinct,  to  be  certain  of  it.  It  is  not  easy 
to  give  a  clear  idea  of  the  tumult  of  feeling  with  which 
Mark  Woolston  beheld  these  unknown  regions,  though  it 
might  best  be  compared  with  the  emotions  of  the  astrono 
mer  who  discovers  a  new  planet.  It  would  scarce  exceed 
the  truth  to  say  that  he  regarded  that  dim,  blue  mountain, 
which  arose  in  the  midst  of  a  watery  waste,  with  as  much 
of  admiration,  mysterious  awe  and  gratification  united,  as 
Herschel  may  have  been  supposed  to  feel  when  he  esta 
blished  the  character  of  Uranus.  It  was  fully  an  hour 
before  our  hermit  could  turn  his  eyes  in  any  other  di 
rection. 

And  when  our  young  mariner  did  look  aside,  it  was 
more  with  the  intention  of  relieving  eyes  that  had  grown 


188  THE  CRATER; 

dim  with  gazing,  than  of  not  returning  to  the  same  objects 
again,  as  soon  as  restored  to  their  power.  It  was  while 
walking  to  and  fro  on  the  peak,  with  this  intent,  that  a 
new  subject  of  interest  caused  him  almost  to  leap  into  the 
air,  and  to  shout  aloud.  He  saw  a  sail !  For  the  first 
time  since  Betts  disappeared  from  his  anxious  looks,  his 
eyes  now  surely  rested  on  a  vessel.  What  was  more,  it 
was  quite  near  the  island  he  was  on,  and  seemed  to  be 
beating  up  to  get  under  its  lee.  It  appeared  but  a  speck 
on  the  blue  waves  of  the  ocean,  seen  from  that  height,  it 
is  true ;  but  Mark  was  too  well  practised  in  his  craft  to  be 
mistaken.  It  was  a  vessel,  under  more  or  less  canvas,  how 
much  he  could  not  then  tell,  or  even  see — but  it  was  most 
decidedly  a  vessel.  Mark's  limbs  trembled  so  much  that 
he  was  compelled  to  throw  himself  upon  the  earth  to  find 
the  support  he  wanted.  There  he  lay  several  minutes, 
mentally  returning  thanks  to  God  for  this  unexpected  fa 
vour;  and  when  his  strength  revived,  these  signs  of  grati 
tude  were  renewed  on  his  knees.  Then  he  arose,  almost 
in  terror  lest  the  vessel  should  have  disappeared,  or  it 
should  turn  out  that  he  was  the  subject  of  a  cruel  illusion. 
There  was  no  error.  There  was  the  little  white  speck, 
and  he  levelled  the  glass  to  get  a  better  look  at  it.  An 
exclamation  now  clearly  broke  from  his  lips,  and  for  a 
minute  or  two  the  young  man  actually  appeared  to  be  out 
of  his  senses.  "  The  pinnace,"  "  the  Neshamony,"  how 
ever,  were  words  that  escaped  him,  and,  had  there  been  a 
witness,  might  have  given  an  insight  into  this  extraordinary 
conduct.  Mark  had,  in  fact,  ascertained  that  the  sail  be 
neath  the  peak  was  no  other  than  the  little  craft  that  had 
been  swept  away,  as  already  described,  with  Betts  in  it. 
Fourteen  months  had  elapsed  since  that  occurrence,  and 
here  it  was  again,  seemingly  endeavouring  to  return  to  the 
place  where  it  had  been  launched  !  Mark  adopted  per 
haps  the  best  expedient  in  his  power  to  attract  attention  to 
himself,  and  to  let  his  presence  be  known.  He  fired  both 
barrels  of  his  fowling-piece,  and  repeated  the  discharges 
several  times,  or  until  a  flag  was  shown  on  board  the  sloop, 
which  was  now  just  beneath  the  cliff,  a  certain  sign  that 
be  had  succeeded.  A  musket  was  also  fired  from  the 
vessel. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  189 

Our  young  man  rather  flew  than  ran  to  the  ravine,  down 
which  he  went  at  apace  that  several  times  placed  his  neck 
in  jeopardy.  It  was  a  very  different  thing  to  descend  from 
ascending  such  a  mountain.  In  less  than  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  the  half-distracted  hermit  was  in  his  boat,  nearly 
crazy  with  the  apprehension  that  he  might  yet  not  meet 
with  his  friend ;  -for,  that  it  was  Bob  looking  for  the  Reef 
and  himself,  he  did  not  now  entertain  the  least  doubt. 
The  most  plausible  course  for  him  to  adopt  was  precisely 
that  which  he  followed.  He  pushed  off  in  the  Bridget, 
making  sail  on  the  boat,  and  getting  out  of  the  cove  in  the 
shortest  time  he  could.  On  quitting  his  little  haven,  and 
coming  out  clear  of  all  the  rocks,  another  shout  burst  out 
of  his  very  soul,  when  he  saw  the  Neshamony,  beyond  all 
cavil,  within  a  hundred  fathoms  of  him,  running  along  the 
shore  in  search  of  a  place  to  land.  That  shout  was  returned, 
and  Mark  and  Bob  recognised  each  other  at  the  next  in 
stant.  As  for  the  last,  he  just  off  tarpaulin,  and  gave  three 
hearty  cheers,  while  the  former  sank  on  a  seat,  literally 
unable  to  stand.  The  sheet  of  the  sail  got  away  from  him, 
nor  could  he  be  said  to  know  what  he  was  about,  until 
some  little  time  after  he  was  in  the  arms  of  his  friend,  and 
on  board  the  pinnace. 

It  was  half-an-hour  before  Mark  was  master  of  himself 
again.  At  length  tears  relieved  him  ;  nor  was  he  ashamed 
to  indulge  in  them,  when  he  saw  his  old  companion  not 
only  alive  and  well,  but  restored  to  him.  He  perceived 
another  in  the  boat ;  but  as  he  was  of  a  dark  skin,  he  natu 
rally  inferred  this  second  person  was  a  native  of  some 
neighbouring  island  where  Bob  had  been,  and  who  had 
consented  to  come  with  him  in  this,  his  search  after  the 
shipwrecked  mariner.  At  length  Bob  began  to  con 
verse. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Mark,  the  sight  of  you  is  the  pleasantest 
prospect  that  has  met  my  eyes  this  many  a  day,"  exclaimed 
the  honest  fellow.  "  It  was  with  fear  and  trembling  that 
I  set  out  on  the  search,  and  little  did  I  hope  to  fall  in  with 
you  so  early  in  the  cruise." 

"Thank  you,  thank  you,  Bob,  and  God  be  praised  for 
this  great  mercy !  You  have  been  to  some  other  island,  I 
see,  by  your  companion ;  but  the  miraculous  part  of  all  is, 


190  THE  CRATER; 

that  you  should  find  your  way  back  to  the  Reef,  since  you 
are  no  navigator." 

"  The  Reef!  If  this  here  mountain  is  the  Reef,  the 
country  has  greatly  altered  since  I  left  it,"  answered  Bob. 
Mark  then  briefly  explained  the  great  change  that  had 
actually  occurred,  and  told  his  own  story  touching  his  boat 
and  his  late  voyages  of  discovery.  Betts  listened  with  the 
greatest  attention,  casting  occasional  glances  upward  at  the 
immense  mass  that  had  been  so  suddenly  lifted  out  of  the 
sea,  as  well  as  turning  his  head  to  regard  the  smoke  of  the 
more  distant  volcano. 

"  Well,  this  explains  our  'arthquake,"  he  answered,  as 
soon  as  Mark  was  done.  "  I  must  have  been  as  good  as  a 
hundred  and  fifty  leagues  from  this  very  spot  at  the  time 
you  mention,  and  we  had  tremblings  there  that  would 
scarce  let  a  body  stand  on  his  feet.  A  ship  came  in  two 
days  arterwards,  that  must  have  been  a  hundred  leagues 
further  to  the  nor'ard  when  it  happened,  and  her  people 
reported  that  they  thought  heaven  and  'arth  was  a  coming 
together,  out  there  in  open  water." 

"  It  has  been  a  mighty  earthquake — must  have  been,  to 
have  wrought  these  vast  changes ;  though  I  had  supposed 
that  Providence  had  confined  a  knowledge  of  its  existence 
to  myself.  But,  you  spoke  of  a  ship,  Bob — surely  we  are 
not  in  the  neighbourhood  of  vessels." 

"  Sartain — but,  I  may  as  well  tell  you  my  adventures  at 
once,  Mr.  Mark ;  though  I  own  I  should  like  to  land  first, 
as  it  is  a  long  story,  and  take  a  look  at  this  island  that  you 
praise  so  much,  and  taste  them  reed-birds  of  which  you 
give  so  good  an  account.  I'm  Jarsey-born  and  bred,  and 
know  what  the  little  things  be." 

Mark  was  dying  to  hear  Bob's  story,  more  especially 
since  he  understood  a  ship  was  connected  with  it,  but  he 
could  not  refuse  his  friend's  demand  for  sweet  water  and 
a  dinner.  The  entrance  of  the  cove  was  quite  near,  and 
the  boats  entered  that  harbour  and  were  secured;  after 
which  the  three  men  commenced  the  ascent,  Mark  picking 
up  by  the-  way  the  spy-glass,  fowling-piece,  and  other  arti 
cles  that  he  had  dropped  in  the  haste  of  his  descent.  While 
going  up  this  sharp  acclivity,  but  little  was  said;  but,  when 
they  reached  the  summit,  or  the  plain  rather,  exclamations 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  191 

of  delight  burst  from  the  mouths  of  both  of  Mark's  com 
panions.  To  the  young  man's  great  surprise,  those  which 
came  from  Bob's  dark-skinned  associate  were  in  English, 
as  well  as  those  which  came  from  Bob  himself.  This  in 
duced  him  to  take  a  good  look  at  the  man,  when  he  disco 
vered  a  face  that  he  knew ! 

"  How  is  this,  Bob  ?"  cried  Mark,  almost  gasping  for 
breath — "whom  have  you  here?  Is  not  this  Socrates?" 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir ;  that 's  Soc ;  and  Dido,  his  wife,  is  within 
a  hundred  miles  of  you." 

This  answer,  simple  as  it  was,  nearly  overcame  our 
young  man  again.  Socrates  and  Dido  had  been  the  slaves 
of  Bridget,  when  he  left  home;  a  part  of  the  estate  she 
had  received  from  her  grandmother.  .  They  dwelt  in  the 
house  with  her,  and  uniformly  called  her  mistress.  Mark 
knew  them  both  very  well,  as  a  matter  of  course;  and 
Dido,  with  the  archness  of  a  favourite  domestic,  was  often 
in  the  habit  of  calling  him  her  '  young  master.'  A  flood 
of  expectations,  conjectures  and  apprehensions  came  over 
our  hero,  and  he  refrained  from  putting  any  questions  im 
mediately,  out  of  pure  astonishment.  He  was  almost  afraid 
indeed  to  ask  any. 

Nearly  unconscious  of  what  he  was  about,  he  led  the 
way  to  the  grove  where  he  had  dined  two  or  three  hours 
before,  and  where  the  remainder  of  the  reed-birds  were 
suspended  from  the  branch  of  a  tree.  The  embers  of  the 
fire  were  ready,  and  in  a  few  minutes  Socrates  handed 
Betts  his  dinner. 

Bob  ate  and  drank  heartily.  He  loved  a  tin-pot  of  rum 
and-water,  or  grog,  as  it  used  to  be  called — though  even 
the  word  is  getting  to  be  obsolete  in  these  temperance 
times — and  he  liked  good  eating.  It  was  not  epicurism, 
however,  or  a  love  of  the  stomach,  that  induced  him  to 
defer  his  explanations  on  the  present  occasion.  He  saw 
that  Mark  must  hear  what  he  had  to  relate  gradually,  and 
was  not  sorry  that  the  recognition  of  the  negro  had  pre 
pared  him  to  expect  something  wonderful.  Wonderful  it 
was,  indeed ;  and  at  last  Betts,  having  finished  his  dinner, 
and  given  half-a-dozen  preparatory  hints,  in  order  to  lessen 
the  intensity  of  his  young  friend's  feelings,  yielded  to 
an  appeal  from  the  other's  eyes,  and  commenced  his  nar- 


192  THE  CRATER; 

rative.  Bob  told  his  story,  as  a  matter  of  course,  with  a 
great  deal  of  circumlocution,  and  in  his  own  language. 
There  was  a  good  deal  of  unnecessary  prolixity  in  it,  and 
some  irrelative  digressions  touching  currents,  and  the 
trades,  and  the  weather ;  but,  on  the  whole,  it  was  given 
intelligibly,  and  with  sufficient  brevity  for  one  who  de 
voured  every  syllable  he  uttered.  The  reader,  however, 
would  most  probably  prefer  to  hear  an  abridgement  of  the 
tale  in  our  own  words. 

When  Robert  Betts  was  driven  off  the  Reef,  by  the 
hurricane  of  the  preceding  year,  he  had  no  choice  but  to 
let  the  Neshamony  drive  to  leeward  with  him.  As  soon 
as  he  could,  he  got  the  pinnace  before  the  wind,  and, 
whenever  he  saw  broken  water  ahead,  he  endeavoured  to 
steer  clear  of  it.  This  he  sometimes  succeeded  in  effect 
ing  ;  while  at  others  he  passed  through  it,  or  over  it,  at  the 
mercy  of  the  tempest.  Fortunately  the  wind  had  piled  up 
the  element  in  such  a  way  as  to  carry  the  craft  clear  of  the 
rocks,  and  in  three  hours  after  the  Neshamony  was  lifted 
out  of  her  cradle,  she  was  in  the  open  ocean,  to  leeward 
of  all  the  dangers.  It  blew  too  hard,  however,  to  make 
sail  on  her,  and  Bob  was  obliged  to  scud  until  the  gale 
broke.  Then,  indeed,  he  passed  a  week  in  endeavouring 
to  beat  back  and  rejoin  his  friend,  but  without  success, 
*  losing  all  he  made  in  the  day,  while  asleep  at  night.' 
Such,  at  least,  was  Bob's  account  of  his  failure  to  find  the 
Reef  again ;  though  Mark  thought  it  probable  that  he  was 
a  little  out  in  his  reckoning,  and  did  not  look  in  exactly 
the  right  place  for  it. 

At  the  end  of  this  week  high  land  was  made  to  leeward, 
and  Betts  ran  down  for  it,  in  the  hope  of  finding  inhabit 
ants.  In  this  last  expectation,  however,  he  did  not  suc 
ceed.  It  was  a  volcanic  mountain,  of  a  good  many  re 
sources,  and  of  a  character  not  unlike  that  of  Vulcan's 
Peak,  but  entirely  unpeopled.  He  named  it  after  his  old 
ship,  and  passed  several  days  on  it.  On  describing  its 
appearance,  and  its  bearings  from  the  place  where  they 
then  were,  Mark  had  no  doubt  it  was  the  island  that  was 
visible  from  the  peak  near  them,  and  at  which  he  had  been 
gazing  that  very  afternoon,  for  fully  an  hour  with  longing 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  193 

eyes.  On  describing  its  form  to  Bob,  the  latter  coincided 
in  this  opinion,  which  was  in  fact  the  true  one. 

From  the  highest  point  of  Rancocus  Island,  land  was 
to  be  seen  to  the  northward  and  westward,  and  Bob  now 
determined  to  make  the  best  of  his  way  in  that  direction, 
in  the  hope  of  falling  in  with  some  vessel  after  sandal-wood 
or  beche-le-mar.  He  fell  in  with  a  group  of  low  islands, 
of  a  coral  formation,  about  a  hundred  leagues  from  his  vol 
canic  mountain,  and  on  them  he  found  inhabitants.  These 
people  were  accustomed  to  see  white  men,  and  turned  out 
to  be  exceedingly  mild  and  just.  It  is  probable  that  they 
connected  the  sudden  appearance  of  a  vessel  like  the  Ne- 
shamony,  having  but  one  man  in  it,  with  some  miraculous 
interposition  of  their  gods,  for  they  paid  Bob  the  highest 
honours,  and  when  he  landed,  solemnly  tabooed  his  sloop. 
Bob  was  a  long-headed  fellow  in  the  main,  and  was  not 
slow  to  perceive  the  advantage  of  such  a  ceremony,  and 
encouraged  it.  He  also  formed  a  great  intimacy  with  the 
chief,  exchanging  names  and  rubbing  noses  with  him. 
This  chief  was  styled  Betto,  after  the  exchange,  and  Bob 
was  called  Ooroony  by  the  natives.  Ooroony  stayed  a 
month  with  Betto,  when  he  undertook  a  voyage  with  him 
in  a  large  canoe,  to  another  group,  that  was  distant  two  or 
three  hundred  miles,  still  further  to  the  northward,  and 
where  Bob  was  told  he  should  find  a  ship.  This  account 
proved  to  be  true,  the  ship  turning  out  to  be  a  Spaniard, 
from  South  America,  engaged  in  the  pearl  fishery,  and  on 
the  eve  of  sailing  for  her  port.  From  some  misunderstand 
ing  with  the  Spanish  captain,  that  Bob  never  comprehended 
and  of  course  could  not  explain,  and  which  he  did  not  at 
tempt  to  explain,  Betto  left  the  group  in  haste,  and  without 
taking  leave  of  his  new  friend,  though  he  sent  him  a  mes 
sage  of  apology,  one-half  of  which  was  lost  on  Bob,  in  con 
sequence  of  not  understanding  the  language.  The  result 
was,  however,  to  satisfy  the  latter  that  his  friend  was  quite 
as  sorry  to  abandon  him,  as  he  was  glad  to  get  away  from 
the  Spanish  captain. 

This  desertion  left  Betts  no  choice  between  remaining 

on  the  pearl  island,  or  of  sailing  in  the  brig,  which  went 

to  sea  next  day.     He  decided  to  do  the  last.     In  due  time 

he  was  landed  at  Panama,  whence  he  made  his  way  across 

17 


194  THE   CRATER; 

the  isthmus,  actually  reaching  Philadelphia  in  less  than 
five  months  after  he  was  driven  off  the  Reef.  In  all  this 
he  was  much  favoured  by  circumstances ;  though  an  old 
salt,  like  Bob,  will  usually  make  his  way  where  a  landsman 
would  be  brought  up. 

The  owners  of  the  Rancocus  gave  up  their  ship,  as  soon 
as  Betts  had  told  his  story,  manifesting  no  disposition  to 
send  good  money  after  bad.  They  looked  to  the.  under 
writers,  and  got  Bob  to  make  oath  to  the  loss  of  the  vessel ; 
which  said  oath,  by  the  way,  was  the  ground-work  of  a 
law-suit  that  lasted  Friend  Abraham  White  as  long  as  he 
lived.  Bob  next  sought  Bridget  with  his  tale.  The  young 
wife  received  the  poor  fellow  with  floods  of  tears,  and  the 
most  eager  attention  to  his  story,  as  indeed  did  our  hero's 
sister  Anne.  It  would  seem  that  Betts's  arrival  was  most 
opportune.  In  consequence  of  the  non-arrival  of  the  ship, 
which  was  then  past  due  two  or  three  months,  Doctor 
Yardley  had  endeavoured  to  persuade  his  daughter  that 
she  was  a  widow,  if  indeed,  as  he  had  of  late  been  some 
what  disposed  to  maintain,  she  had  ever  been  legally  mar 
ried  at  all.  The  truth  was,  that  the  medical  war  in  Bristol 
had  broken  out  afresh,  in  consequence  of  certain  cases 
that  had  been  transferred  to  that  village,  during  one  of  the 
fever-seasons  in  Philadelphia.  Greater  cleanliness,  and 
the  free  use  of  fresh  water,  appear  to  have  now  arrested 
the  course  of  this  formidable  disease,  in  the  northern  cities 
of  America ;  but,  in  that  day,  it  was  of  very  frequent  oc 
currence.  Theories  prevailed  among  the  doctors  concern 
ing  it,  which  were  bitterly  antagonistical  to  each  other; 
and  Doctor  Woolston  headed  one  party  in  Bucks,  while 
Doctor  Yardley  headed  another.  Which  was  right,  or 
whether  either  was  right,  is  more  than  we  shall  pretend  to 
say,  though  we  think  it  probable  that  both  were  wrong. 
Anne  Woolston  had  been  married  to  a  young  physician 
but  a  short  time,  when  this  new  outbreak  concerning  yel 
low  fever  occurred.  Her  husband,  whose  name  was  Hea- 
ton,  unfortunately  took  the  side  of  this  grave  question  that 
was  opposed  to  his  father-in-law,  for  a  reason  no  better 
than  that  he  believed  in  the  truth  of  the  opposing  theory, 
and  this  occasioned  another  breach.  Doctor  Yardley  could 
not,  and  did  not  wholly  agree  with  Doctor  Heaton,  because 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  195 

the  latter  was  Doctor  Woolston's  son-in-law,  and  he  altered 
his  theory  a  little  to  create  a  respectable  point  of  disagree 
ment  ;  while  Doctor  Woolston  could  not  pardon  a  disaffec 
tion  that  took  place,  as  it  might  be,  in  the  height  of  a  war. 
About  this  time  too,  Mrs.  Yardley  died. 

All  these  occurrences,  united  to  the  protracted  absence 
of  Mark,  made  Bridget  and  Anne  extremely  unhappy.  To 
increase  this  unhappiness,  Doctor  Yardley  took  it  into  his 
head  to  dispute  the  legality  of  a  marriage  that  had  been 
solemnized  on  board  a  ship.  This  was  an  entirely  new 
legal  crotchet,  but  the  federal  government  was  then  young, 
and  jurisdictions  had  not  been  determined  as  clearly  as  has 
since  been  the  case.  Had  it  been  the  fortune  of  Doctor 
Yardley  to  live  in  these  later  times,  he  would  not  have  given 
himself  the  trouble  to  put  violent  constructions  on  any 
thing  ;  but,  getting  a  few  female  friends  to  go  before  the 
necessary  judge,  with  tears  in  their  eyes,  anything  would 
be  granted  to  their  requests,  very  much  as  a  matter  of 
course.  Failing  of  this,  moreover,  there  is  always  the  re 
source  of  the  legislature,  which  will  usually  pass  a  law 
taking  away  a  man's  wife,  or  his  children,  and  sometimes 
his  estate,  if  a  pretty  pathetic  appeal  can  be  made  to  it,  in 
the  way  of  gossip.  We  have  certainly  made  great  progress 
in  this  country,  within  the  last  twenty  years ;  but  whether 
it  has  been  in  a  direction  towards  the  summit  of  human 
perfection,  or  one  downward  towards  the  destruction  of  all 
principles,  the  next  generation  will  probably  be  better  able 
to  say  than  this.  Even  the  government  is  getting  to  be 
gossipian. 

In  the  case  of  Bridget,  however,  public  sympathy  was 
with  her,  as  it  always  will  be  with  a  pretty  woman.  Never 
theless,  her  father  had  great  influence  in  Bucks  county, 
more  especially  with  the  federalists  and  the  anti-depletion- 
ists,  and  it  was  in  his  power  to  give  his  daughter  great 
uneasiness,  if  not  absolutely  to  divorce  her.  So  violent 
did  he  become,  that  he  actually  caused  proceedings  to  be 
commenced  in  Bridget's  name,  to  effect  a  legal  separation, 
taking  the  grounds  that  the  marriage  had  never  been  con 
summated,  that  the  ceremony  had  occurred  on  board  a 
ship,  that  the  wife  was  of  tender  years,  and  lastly,  that  she 
was  an  heiress.  Some  persons  thought  the  Doctor's  pro- 


196  THE  CRATER; 

ceedings  were  instigated  by  the  circumstance  that  another 
relative  had  just  died,  and  left  Bridget  five  thousand  dol 
lars,  which  were  to  be  paid  to  her  the  day  she  was  eighteen, 
the  period  of  a  female's  reaching  her  majority,  according 
to  popular  notions.  The  possession  of  this  money,  which 
Bridget  received  and  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  friend  in 
town,  almost  made  her  father  frantic  for  the  divorce,  or  a 
decree  against  the  marriage,  he  contending  there  was  no 
marriage,  and  that  a  divorce  was  unnecessary.  The  young 
wife  had  not  abandoned  the  hope  of  seeing  her  husband 
return,  all  this  time,  although  uneasiness  concerning  the 
fate  of  the  ship,  was  extending  from  her  owners  into  the 
families  of  those  who  had  sailed  in  her.  She  wished  to 
meet  Mark  with  a  sum  of  money  that  would  enable  him, 
at  once,  to  commence  life  respectably,  and  place  him  above 
the  necessity  of  following  the  seas. 

Belts  reached  Bristol  the  very  day  that  a  decision  was 
made,  on  a  preliminary  point,  in  the  case  of  Yardley  versus 
Woolston,  that  greatly  encouraged  the  father  in  his  hopes 
of  final  success,  and  as  greatly  terrified  his  daughter.  It 
was,  in  fact,  a  mere  question  of  practice,  and  had  no  real 
connection  with  the  merits  of  the  matter  at  issue ;  but  it 
frightened  Bridget  and  her  friend  Anna  enormously.  In 
point  of  fact,  there  was  not  the  smallest  danger  of  the  mar 
riage  being  declared  void,  should  any  one  oppose  the  deci 
sion;  but  this  was  more  than  any  one  of  the  parties  then 
knew,  and  Doctor  Yardley  seemed  so  much  in  earnest, 
that  Bridget  and  Anne  got  into  the  most  serious  state  of 
alarm  on  the  subject.  To  increase  their  distress,  a  suitor 
for  the  hand  of  the  former  appeared  in  the  person  of  a  stu 
dent  of  medicine,  of  very  fair  expectations,  and  who  sup 
ported  every  one  of  Doctor  Yardley's  theories,  in  all  their 
niceties  and  distinctions;  and  what  is  more,  would  have 
supported  them,  had  they  been  ten  times  as  untenable  as 
they  actually  were,  in  reason. 

Had  the  situation  of  Doctor  Heaton  been  more  pleasant 
than  it  was,  it  is  probable  that  the  step  taken  by  himself, 
his  wife,  and  Bridget,  would  never  have  been  thought  of. 
But  it  was  highly  unpleasant.  He  was  poor,  and  dependent 
altogether  on  his  practice  for  a  support.  Now,  it  was  in 
Doctor  Woolston's  power  to  be  of  great  service  to  the 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  197 

young  couple,  by  introducing  the  son-in-law  to  his  own 
patients,  but  this  he  could  not  think  of  doing  with  a  deple- 
tionist;  and  John,  as  Anne  affectionately  styled  her  hus 
band,  was  left  to  starve  on  his  system  of  depletion.  Such 
was  the  state  of  things  when  Bob  appeared  in  Bristol,  to 
announce  to  the  young  wife  not  only  the  existence  but  the 
deserted  and  lone  condition  of  her  husband.  The  honest 
fellow  knew  there  was  something  clandestine  about  the 
marriage,  and  he  used  proper  precautions  not  to  betray  his 
presence  to  the  wrong  persons.  By  means  of  a  little  ma 
nagement  he  saw  Bridget  privately,  and  told  his  story. 
As  Bob  had  been  present  at  the  wedding,  and  was  known 
to  stand  high  in  Mark's  favour,  he  was  believed,  quite  as  a 
matter  of  course,  and  questioned  in  a  thousand  ways,  until 
the  poor  fellow  had  not  really  another  syllable  to  commu 
nicate. 

The  sisters  shed  floods  of  tears  at  the  thought  of  poor 
Mark's  situation.  For  several  days  they  did  little  besides 
weep  and  pray.  Then  Bridget  suddenly  dried  her  tears, 
and  announced  an  intention  to  go  in  person  to  the  rescue 
of  her  husband.  Not  only  was  she  determined  on  this, 
but,  as  a  means  of  giving  a  death-blow  to  all  expectations 
of  a  separation  and  to  the  hopes  of  her  new  suitor,  she  was 
resolved  to  go  in  a  way  that  should  enable  her  to  remain 
on  the  Reef  with  Mark,  and,  if  necessary,  to  pass  the  re 
mainder  of  her  days  there.  Bob  had  given  a  very  glowing 
description  of  the  charms  of  the  residence,  as  well  as  of  the 
climate,  the  latter  quite  justly,  and  declared  his  readiness 
to  accompany  this  faithful  wife  in  the  pursuit  of  her  lost 
partner.  The  whole  affair  was  communicated  to  Doctor 
and  Mrs.  Heaton,  who  not  only  came  into  the  scheme,  but 
enlisted  in  its  execution  in  person.  The  idea  pleased  the 
former  in  particular,  who  had  a  love  of  adventure,  and  a 
desire  to  see  other  lands,  while  Anne  was  as  ready  to  fol 
low  her  husband  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  as  Bridget  was 
to  go  to  the  same  place  in  quest  of  Mark.  In  a  word,  the 
whole  project  was  deliberately  framed,  and  ingeniously 
carried  out. 

Doctor  Heaton  had  a  brother,  a  resident  of  New  York, 
and  often  visited  him.  Bridget  was  permitted  to  accom 
pany  Anne  to  that  place,  whither  her  money  was  trans- 


198  THE  CRATER; 

ferred  to  her.  A  vessel  was  found  that  was  about  to  sail  for 
the  North-west  Coast,  and  passages  were  privately  engaged. 
A  great  many  useful  necessaries  were  laid  in,  and,  at  the 
proper  time,  letters  of  leave-taking  were  sent  to  Bristol, 
and  the  whole  party  sailed.  Previously  to  the  embarka 
tion,  Bob  appeared  to  accompany  the  adventurers.  He 
was  attended  by  Socrates,  and  Dido,  and  Juno,  who  had 
stolen  away  by  order  of  their  young  mistress,  as  well  as  by 
a  certain  Friend  Martha  Waters,  who  had  stood  up  in 
'meeting'  with  Friend  Robert  Betts,  and  had  become 
"  bone  of  his  bone  and  flesh  of  his  flesh;"  and  her  maiden 
sister,  Joan  Waters,  who  was  to  share  their  fortunes.  In 
a  word,  Bob  had  brought  an  early  attachment  to  the  test 
of  matrimony. 

So  well  had  the  necessary  combinations  been  made,  that 
the  ship  sailed  with  our  adventurers,  nine  in  number,  with 
out  meeting  with  the  slightest  obstacle.  Once  at  sea,  of 
course  nothing  but  that  caused  by  the  elements  was  to 
be  anticipated.  Cape  Horn  was  doubled  in  due  time,  and 
Doctor  Heaton,  with  all  under  his  care,  was  landed  at  Pa 
nama,  just  five  months,  to  a  day,  after  leaving  New  York. 
Here  passages  were  taken  in  the  same  brig  that  Bob  had 
returned  in,  which  was  again  bound  out,  on  a  pearl-fishing 
voyage.  Previously  to  quitting  Panama,  however,  a  recruit 
was  engaged  in  the  person  of  a  young  American  shipwright, 
of  the  name  of  Bigelow,  who  had  run  from  his  ship  a  twelve 
month  before,  to  marry  a  Spanish  girl,  and  who  had  be 
come  heartily  tired  of  his  life  in  Panama.  He  and  his 
wife  and  child  joined  the  party,  engaging  to  serve  the 
Heatons,  for  a  stipulated  sum,  for  the  term  of  two  years. 

The  voyage  from  Panama  to  the  pearl  islands  was  a  long 
one,  but  far  from  unpleasant.  Sixty  days  after  leaving 
port  the  adventurers  were  safely  landed,  with  all  their  ef 
fects.  These  included  two  cows,  with  a  young  bull,  two 
yearling  colts,  several  goats  obtained  in  South  America, 
and  various  implements  of  husbandry  that  it  had  not  entered 
into  the  views  of  Friend  Abraham  White  to  send  to  even 
the  people  of  Fejee.  With  the  natives  of  the  pearl  island, 
Bob,  already  known  to  them  and  a  favourite,  had  no  diffi 
culty  in  negotiating.  He  had  brought  them  suitable  and 
ample  presents,  and  soon  effected  an  arrangement,  by  which 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  199 

they  agreed  to  transport  him  and  all  his  stores,  the  animals 
included,  to  Betto's  Islands,  a  distance  of  fully  three  hun 
dred  miles.  The  horses  and  cows  were  taken  on  a  species 
of  catamaran,  or  large  raft,  that  is  much  used  in  those  mild 
§eas,  and  which  sail  reasonably  well  a  little  off  the  wind, 
and  not  very  badly  on.  At  Betto's  Islands  a  new  bargain 
was  struck,  and  the  whole  party  proceeded  to  Rancocus 
Island,  Bob  making  his  land-fall  without  any  difficulty, 
from  having  observed  the  course  steered  in  coming  from  it. 

At  Betto's  group,  however,  Bob  found  the  Neshamony, 
covered  with  mats,  and  tabooed,  precisely  as  he  had  left 
her  to  a  rope-yarn.  Not  a  human  hand  had  touched  any 
thing  belonging  to  the  boat,  or  a  human  foot  approached  it, 
during  the  whole  time  of  his  absence.  Ooroony,  or  Betto, 
was  rewarded  for  his  fidelity  by  the  present  of  a  musket 
and  some  ammunition,  articles  that  were  really  of  the  last 
importance  to  his  dignity  and  power.  They  were  as  good 
as  a  standing  army  to  him,  actually  deciding  summarily  a 
point  of  disputed  authority,  that  had  long  been  in  contro 
versy  between  himself  and  another  chief,  in  his  favour. 
The  voyage  between  Betto's  group  and  Rancocus  Island 
was  made  in  the  Neshamony,  so  far  as  the  human  portion 
of  the  freight  was  concerned.  The  catamarans  and  ca 
noes,  however,  came  on  with  the  other  animals,  and  all 
the  utensils  and  stores. 

The  appearance  of  Rancocus  Island  created  quite  as 
much  astonishment  among  the  native  mariners,  as  had  that 
of  the  horses,  cows,  &c.  Until  they  saw  it,  not  one  of 
them  had  any  notion  of  its  existence,  or  of  a  mountain  at 
all.  They  dwelt  themselves  on  low  coral  islands,  and  quite 
beyond  the  volcanic  formation,  and  a  hill  was  a  thing  scarce 
ly  known  to  them.  At  this  island  Heaton  and  Betts  deemed 
it  prudent  to  dismiss  their  attendants,  not  wishing  them  to 
know  anything  of  the  Reef,  as  they  were  not  sure  what 
sort  of  neighbours  they  might  prove,  on  a  longer  acquaint 
ance.  The  mountain,  however,  possessed  so  many  advan 
tages  over  the  Reef,  as  the  latter  was  when  Bob  left  it, 
that  the  honest  fellow  frankly  admitted  its  general  superi 
ority,  and  suggested  the  possibility  of  its  becoming  their 
permanent  residence.  In  some  respects  it  was  not  equal 
to  the  Reef,  as  a  residence,  however,  the  fishing  in  parti- 


200  THE   CRATER; 

cular  turning  out  to  be  infinitely  inferior.  But  it  had  trees 
and  fruits,  being  very  much  of  the  same  character  as  Vul 
can's  Peak,  in  this  respect.  Nevertheless,  there  was  no 
comparison  between  the  two  islands  as  places  of  residence, 
the  last  having  infinitely  the  most  advantages.  It  was 
larger,  had  more  and  better  fruits,  better  water,  and  richer 
grasses.  It  ha-d  also  a  more  even  surface,  and  a  more  ac 
cessible  plain.  Rancocus  Island  was  higher  and  more 
broken,  and,  while  it  might  be  a  pleasanter  place  of  resi 
dence  than  the  Reef  during  the  warm  months, -it  never 
could  be  a  place  as  pleasant  as  the  plain  of  the  Peak. 

Bob  found  it  necessary  to  leave  his  friends,  and  most 
of  his  stores,  at  Rancocus  Island ;  Mrs.  Heaton  becoming 
a  mother  two  days  after  their  arrival  at  it,  and  the  cows 
both  increasing  their  families  in  the  course  of  the  same 
week.  It  was,  moreover,  impossible  to  transport  everybody 
and  everything  in  the  Neshamony,  at  the  same  time.  As 
Doctor  Heaton  would  not  leave  Anne  at  such  a  moment,  and 
Bridget  was  of  the  same  way  of  thinking,  it  was  thought 
best  to  improve  the  time  by  sending  out  Betts  to  explore. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  he  was  uncertain  where  the 
Reef  was  to  be  found  exactly,  though  convinced  it  was  to 
windward,  and  within  a  hundred  miles  of  him.  While 
roaming  over  the  rocks  of  Rancocus,  however,  Vulcan's 
Peak  had  been  seen,  as  much  to  Bob's  surprise  as  to  his 
delight.  To  his  surprise,  inasmuch  as  he  had  no  notion 
of  the  great  physical  change  that  had  recently  been  wrought 
by  the  earthquake,  yet  could  scarce  believe  he  had  over 
looked  such  an  object  in  his  former  examinations;  and  to 
his  delight,  because  he  was  now  satisfied  that  the  Reef 
must  lie  to  the  northward  of  that  strange  mountain,  and  a 
long  distance  from  it,  because  no  such  peak  had  been  visi 
ble  from  the  former  when  he  left  it.  It  was  a  good  place 
to  steer  for,  nevertheless,  on  this  new  voyage,  since  it  car 
ried  him  a  hundred  miles  to  windward ;  and  when  Bob, 
with  Socrates  for  a  companion,  left  Rancocus  to  look  for 
the  Reef,  he  steered  as  near  the  course  for  the  Peak  as  the 
wind  would  permit.  He  had  made  the  island  from  the 
boat,  after  a  run  of  ten  hours ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  he 
made  the  crater  of  the  active  volcano.  For  the  latter,  he 
stood  that  night,  actually  going  within  a  mile  of  it;  and, 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  201 

next  morning,  he  altered  his  course,  and  beat  up  for  the 
strange  island.  When  Mark  first  discovered  him,  he  had 
nearly  made  the  circuit  of  Vulcan's  Peak,  in  a  vain  endea 
vour  to  land,  and  he  would  actually  have  gone  on  his  way, 
had  it  not  been  for  the  firing  of  the  fowling-piece,  the  re 
port  of  which  he  heard,  and  the  smoke  of  which  he  saw. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

"  Cornpell  the  hawke  to  sit,  that  is  unmanned, 
Or  make  the  hound,  untaught,  to  draw  the  deere, 
Or  bring  the  free,  against  his  will,  in  band, 
Or  move  the  sad,  a  pleasant  tale  to  heere, 
Your  time  is  lost,  and  you  no  whit  the  neere ! 
So  love  ne  learnes,  of  force,  the  heart  to  knit: 
She  serves  but  those,  that  feels  sweet  fancie's  fit." 

Churchyard. 

WE  leave  the  reader  to  imagine  with  what  feelings  Mark 
heard  these  facts.  Bridget,  for  whom  his  tenderness  was 
unabated :  Bridget,  who  had  been  the  subject  of  so  many 
of  his  thoughts  since  his  shipwreck,  had  shown  herself 
worthy  to  be  thus  loved,  and  was  now  on  an  island  that  he 
might  easily  reach  in  a  run  of  a  few  hours !  The  young 
man  retired  further  within  the  grove,  leaving  Bob  and  So 
crates  behind,  and  endeavoured  to  regain  his  composure 
by  himself.  Before  rejoining  his  companions,  he  knelt 
and  returned  thanks  to  God  for  this  instance  of  his  great 
kindness.  It  was  a  long  time,  notwithstanding,  before  he 
could  become  accustomed  to  the  idea  of  having  associates, 
at  all.  Time  and  again,  within  the  next  month  or  two, 
did  he  dream  that  all  this  fancied  happiness  was  only  a 
dream,  and  awoke  under  a  sense  of  having  been  the  subject 
of  an  agreeable  illusion.  It  took  months  perfectly  to  re 
store  the  tone  of  his  mind  in  this  respect,  and  to  bring  it 
back  into  the  placid  current  of  habitual  happiness.  The 
deep  sense  of  gratitude  to  God  he  never  lost ;  but  the  re 
collection  of  what  he  had  suffered,  and  from  what  he  had 


202  THE   CRATER; 

been  relieved  by  the  Divine  mercy,  remained  indelibly  im 
pressed  on  his  heart,  and  influenced  his  future  life  to  a 
degree  that  increased  the  favour  a  thousand-fold. 

The  mode  of  proceeding  was  next  discussed,  in  the 
course  of  doing  which  Mark  communicated  to  Bob,  some 
what  in  detail,  the  circumstance  of  the  recent  convulsion, 
and  the  changes  which  it  had  produced.  After  talking  the 
matter  over,  both  agreed  it  would  be  every  way  desirable 
to  bring  the  whole  party,  and  as  much  of  the  property  as 
could  be  easily  moved,  up  to  windward  at  once.  Now, 
that  the  natives  knew  of  the  existence  of  Rancocus  Island, 
their  visits  might  be  often  expected,  and  nothing  was  more 
uncertain  than  their  policy  and  friendship.  Once  on  Ran 
cocus  Island  the  Peak  could  be  seen,  and  from  the  Peak 
the  Reef  was  visible.  In  this  way,  then,  there  was  every 
reason  to  believe  that  the  existence  of  their  little  colony 
would  soon  become  known,  and  the  property  they  possessed 
the  object  of  cupidity  and  violence.  Against  such  conse 
quences  it  would  be  necessary  to  guard  with  the  strictest 
care,  and  the  first  step  should  be  to  get  everything  of  value 
up  to  windward,  with  the  least  possible  delay.  The  na 
tives  often  went  a  long  distance,  in  their  canoes  and  on 
their  rafts,  with  the  wind  abeam,  but  it  was  not  often  they 
undertook  to  go  directly  to  windward.  Then  the  activity 
of  the  volcano  might  be  counted  on  as  something  in  favour 
of  the  colonists,  since  those  uninstructed  children  of  nature 
would  be  almost  certain  to  set  the  phenomenon  down  to 
the  credit  of  some  god,  or  some  demon,  neither  of  whom 
would  be  likely  to  permit  his  special  domains  to  be  tres 
passed  on  with  impunity. 

While  Mark  and  Bob  were  talking  these  matters  over, 
Socrates  had  been  shooting  and  cleaning  a  few  dozen 
more  of  the  reed-birds.  This  provision  of  the  delicacy 
was  made,  because  Betts  affirmed  no  such  delicious  little 
creature  was  to  be  met  with  on  Rancocus,  though  they  were 
to  be  found  on  Vulcan's  Peak  literally  in  tens  of  thousands. 
This  difference  could  be  accounted  for  in  no  other  way, 
than  by  supposing  that  some  of  the  birds  had  originally 
found  their  way  to  the  latter,  favoured  by  accidental  cir 
cumstances,  driven  by  a  hurricane,  transported  on  sea 
weed,  or  attending  the  drift  of  some  plants,  and  that  the 


PEAK.  203 

same,  or  similar  circumstances,  had  never  contributed  to 
carry  them  the  additional  hundred  miles  to  leeward. 

It  was  near  sunset  when  the  Neshamony  left  Snug  Cove, 
as  Mark  kad  named  his  little  haven,  at  the  foot  of  the  ra 
vine,  which,  by  the  way,  he  called  the  Stairs,  and  put  to 
sea,  on  her  way  to  Rancocus  Island.  The  bearings  of  the 
last  had  been  accurately  taken,  and  our  mariners  were  just 
as  able  to  run  by  night  as  by  day.  It  may  as  well  be  said 
here,  moreover,  that  the  black  was  a  capital  boatman,  and 
a  good  fresh-water  sailor  in  general,  a  proficiency  that  he 
had  acquired  in  consequence  of  having  been  born  and 
brought  up  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware.  But  it  would 
have  been  very  possible  to  run  from  one  of  these  islands 
to  the  other,  by  observing  the  direction  of  the  wind  alone, 
since  it  blew  very  steadily  in  the  same  quarter,  and  changes 
in  the  course  were  always  to  be  noted  by  changes  in  the 
violence  or  freshness  of  the  breeze.  In  that  quarter  of  the 
ocean  the  trades  blew  with  very  little  variation  from  the 
south-east,  though  in  general  the  Pacific  Trades  are  from 
the  south-west. 

Mark  was  delighted  with  the  performances  of  the  Ne 
shamony.  Bob  gave  a  good  account  of  her  qualities,  and 
said  he  should  not  hesitate  to  make  sail  in  her  for  either 
of  the  continents,  in  a  case  of  necessity.  Accustomed,  as 
he  had  been  of  late,  to  the  little  Bridget,  the  pinnace  ap 
peared  a  considerable  craft  to  Mark,  and  he  greatly  exulted 
in  this  acquisition.  No  seaman  could  hesitate  about  pass 
ing  from  the  Reef  to  the  islands,  at  any  time  when  it  did 
not  absolutely  blow  a  gale,  in  a  boat  of  this  size  and  of 
such  qualities;  and,  even  in  a  gale,  it  might  be  possible 
to  make  pretty  good  weather  of  it.  Away  she  now  went, 
leaving  the  Bridget  moored  in  Snug  Cove,  to  await  their 
return.  Of  course,  Mark  and  Bob  had  much  discourse, 
while  running  down  before  the  wind  that  night,  in  which 
each  communicated  to  the  other  many  things  that  still  re 
mained  to  be  said.  Mark  was  never  tired  of  asking  ques 
tions  about  Bridget ;  her  looks,  her  smiles,  her  tears,  her 
hopes,  her  fears,  her  health,  her  spirits,  and  her  resolution, 
being  themes  of  which  he  never  got  weary.  A  watch  was 
set,  nevertheless,  and  each  person  in  the  pinnace  had  hia 
turn  of  sleep,  if  sleep  he  could. 


204  . x  THE   CRATER; 

At  the  rising  of  the  sun  Mark  was  awake.  Springing 
to  his  feet,  he  saw  that  Rancocus  Island  was  plainly  in 
view.  In  the  course  of  the  ten  hours  she  had  been  out, 
the  Neshamony  had  run  about  seventy  miles,  -having  a 
square-sail  set,  in  addition  to  her  jib  and  mainsail.  This 
brought  the  mountain  for  which  she  was  steering  within 
ten  leagues,  and  directly  to  leeward.  A  little  impatience 
was  betrayed  by  the  young  husband,  but,  on  the  whole, 
he  behaved  reasonably  well.  Mark  had  never  neglected 
his  person,  notwithstanding  his  solitude.  Daily  baths,  and 
the  most  scrupulous  attention  to  his  attire,  so  far  as  neat 
ness  went,  had  kept  him  not  only  in  health,  but  in  spirits, 
the  frame  of  the  mind  depending  most  intimately  on  the 
condition  of  the  body.  Among  other  habits,  he  preserved 
that  of  shaving  daily.  The  cutting  of  his  hair  gave  him 
the  most  trouble,  and  he  had  half  a  mind  to  get  Bob  to  act 
as  barber  on  the  present  occasion.  Then  he  remembered 
having  seen  Bridget  once  cut  the  hair  of  a  child,  and  he 
could  not  but  fancy  how  pleasant  it  would  be  to  have  her 
moving  about  him,  in  the  performance  of  the  same  office 
on  himself.  He  decided,  consequently,  to  remain  as  he 
was,  as  regarded  his  looks,  until  his  charming  bride  could 
act  as  his  hair-dresser.  The  toilette,  however,  was  not 
neglected,  and,  on  the  whole,  there  was  no  reason  to  com 
plain  of  the  young  man's  appearance.  The  ship  furnished 
him  clothes  at  will,  and  the  climate  rendered  so  few  neces 
sary,  that  even  a  much  smaller  stock  than  he  possessed, 
would  probably  have  supplied  him  for  life. 

When  about  a  league  from  the  northern  end  of  Ranco 
cus  Island,  Bob  set  a  little  flag  at  his  mast-head,  the  signal, 
previously  arranged,  of  his  having  been  successful.  Among 
the  stores  brought  by  the  party  from  America,  were  three 
regular  tents,  or  marquees,  which  Meaton  purchased  at  a 
sale  of  old  military  stores,  and  had  prudently  brought  with 
him,  to  be  used  as  occasion  might  demand.  These  mar 
quees  were  now  pitched  on  a  broad  piA"e  of  low  land,  that 
lay  between  the  cliffs  and  the  beach,  and  where  the  colony 
had  temporarily  established  itself.  Mark's  heart  beat  vio 
lently  as  Bob  pointed  out  these  little  canvas  dwellings  to 
him.  They  were  the  abodes  of  his  friends,  including  his 
young  wife.  Next  the  cows  appeared,  quietly  grazing 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  205 

near  by,  with  a  pleasant  home  look,  and  the  goats  and  colts 
were  not  far  off,  cropping  the  grass.  Altogether  our  young- 
man  was  profoundly  overcome  again,  and  it  was  some  time 
ere  he  could  regain  his  self-command.  On  a  point  that 
proved  to  be  the  landing-place,  stood  a  solitary  female 
figure.  As  the  boat  drew  nearer  she  extended  her  arms, 
and  then,  as  if  unable  to  stand,  she  sunk  on  a  rock  which 
had  served  her  for  a  seat  ever  since  the  distant  sail  was 
visible.  In  two  more  minutes  Mark  Woolston  had  his 
charming  young  bride  encircled  in  his  arms.  The  delicacy 
which  kept  the  others  aloof  from  this  meeting,  was  imitated 
by  Bob,  who,  merely  causing  the  boat  to  brush  near  the 
rock,  so  as  to  allow  of  Mark's  jumping  ashore,  passed  on 
to  a  distant  landing,  where  he  was  met  by  most  of  his 
party,  including  '  Friend  Martha,'  who  rejoiced  not  a  little 
in  the  safe  return  of  Friend  Robert  Betts.  In  half-an-hour 
Mark  and  Bridget  came  up  to  the  marquees,  when  the 
former  made  the  acquaintance  of  his  brother-in-law,  and 
had  the  happiness  of  embracing  his  sister.  It  was  a  morn 
ing  oi  the  purest  joy,  and  deepest  gratitude.  On  the  one 
side,  the  solitary  man  found  himself  restored  to  the  delights 
of  social  life,  in  the  persons  of  those  on  earth  whom  he 
most  loved  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  numberless  appre 
hensions  of  those  who  looked  for  him,  and  his  place  of 
retirement,  had  all  their  anxiety  rewarded  by  complete 
success.  Little  was  done  that  day  but  to  ask  and  answer 
questions.  Mark  had  to  recount  all  that  had  happened 
since  Bob  was  taken  from  him,  and  not  trifling  was  the 
trepidation  created  among  his  female  listeners,  when  he 
related  the  history  of  the  earthquake.  Their  fears,  how 
ever,  were  somewhat  appeased  by  his  assurances  of  secu 
rity  ;  the  circumstance  that  a  volcano  was  in  activity  near 
by,  being  almost  a  pledge  that  no  very  extensive  convul 
sions  could  follow. 

The  colonists  remained  a  week  at  Rancocus  Island, 
being  actually  too  happy  to  give  themselves  the  disturbance 
of  a  removal.  At  the  end  of  that  time,  however,  Anne 
was  so  far  recovered  that  they  began  to  talk  of  a  voyage, 
Bridget,  in  particular,  dying  to  see  the  place  where  Mark 
had  passed  so  many  solitary  hours;  and,  as  he  had  assured 
her  more  than  once,  where  her  image  had  scarcely  ever 
IS 


206  THE  CRATER; 

been  absent  from  his  thoughts  an  hour  at  a  time.  As  it 
would  be  impossible  to  embark  all  the  effects  at  once,  in 
the  Neshamony,  some  method  was  to  be  observed  in  the 
removal.  The  transportation  of  the  cows  and  horses  was 
the  most  serious  part  of  the  undertaking,  the  pinnace  not 
being  constructed  to  receive  such  animals.  Room,  never 
theless,  could  be  made  for  one  at  a  time,  and  still  leave 
sufficient  space  in  the  stern-sheets  for  the  accommodation 
of  five  or  six  persons.  It  was  very  desirable  to  get  the  fe 
males  away  first,  lest  the  rumour  of  the  mountain,  hitherto 
unknown,  should  spread  among  the  islands,  and  bring  them 
visitors  who  might  prove  to  be  troublesome,  if  not  danger 
ous.  Parties  existed  in  Betto's  group,  as  we  believe  they 
exist  everywhere  else ;  and  Bob  knew  very  well  that  no 
thing  but  the  ascendancy  of  his  friend,  the  chief,  Ooroony, 
had  been  the  means  of  his  escaping  as  well  as  he  did,  in 
the  land-fall  among  them  that  he  had  made.  The  smallest 
reverse  of  fortune  might  put  Betto  down,  and  some  bitter 
foe  up,  and  then  there  was  the  certainty  that  war  canoes 
might  come  off  in  quest  of  the  mountain,  at  any  time, 
without  asking  the  leave  of  the  friendly  chief,  even  while 
he  remained  in  power.  On  the  whole,  therefore,  it  was 
determined  to  freight  the  pinnace  with  the  most  valuable 
of  the  effects,  put  all  the  females  on  board,  and  send  her 
off  under  the  care  of  Mark,  Heaton,  and  Socrates,  leaving 
Bob  and  Bigelow  to  look  after  the  stock  and  the  rest  of  the 
property.  It  was  supposed  the  boat  might  be  absent  a 
week.  This  was  done  accordingly,  Bob,  on  taking  leave 
of  Friend  Martha,  particularly  recommending  to  her  atten 
tion  the  Vulcan's  Peak  reed-birds,  throwing  in  a  hint  that 
he  should  be  glad  to  find  a  string  of  them  in  the  pinnace, 
on  her  return. 

The  voyage  to  windward  was  a  much  more  serious  busi 
ness  than  the  run  to  leeward.  By  Bob's  advice  Mark 
reefed  his  mainsail,  and  took  the  bonnet  off  the  jib.  Fol 
lowing  the  same  instructions,  he  stood  away  to  the  south 
ward,  letting  the  boat  go  through  the  water  freely,  intend 
ing  to  tack  when  he  came  near  the  volcano,  and  not  before. 
This  was  what  Bob  himself  had  done,  and  that  which  had 
turned  out  so  well  with  him,  he  fancied  might  succeed 
with  his  friend.  The  Neshamony  left  Rancocus  Island 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  207 

just  at  sunset.  Next  morning  Mark  saw  the  smoke  of  the 
Volcano,  and  stood  for  it  After  making  two  stretches,  he 
came  up  within  a  league  of  this  spot,  when  he  tacked  and 
stood  to  the  northward  and  eastward,  Vulcan's  Peak  having 
been  in  plain  view  the  entire  day.  As  respects  the  vol 
cano,  it  was  in  a  comparatively  quiet  state,  though  rum 
bling  sounds  were  heard,  and  stones  were  cast  into  the  air 
in  considerable  quantities,  while  the  boat  was  nearest  in. 
One  thing,  moreover,  Mark  ascertained,  which  greatly 
increased  his  confidence  in  the  permanency  of  the  changes 
that  had  lately  occurred  in  the  physical  formation-  of  all 
that  region.  He  found  himself  in  comparatively  shoal 
water,  when  fully  a  league  from  this  new  crater.  Shoal 
in  a  seaman's  sense,  though  not  in  shallow  water;  the 
soundings  being  from  fifteen  to  twenty  fathoms,  with  a 
rocky  bottom. 

Between  the  volcano  and  Vulcan's  Peak  it  blew  quite 
fresh,  and  Mark  had  a  good  occasion  to  ascertain  the  qua 
lities  of  the  pinnace.  A  long,  heavy  swell,  came  rolling 
through  the  passage,  which  was  near  sixty  miles  in  width, 
seemingly  with  a  sweep  that  extended  to  the  Southern 
Ocean.  Notwithstanding  all  this,  the  little  craft  did  won 
ders,  struggling  along  in  a  way  one  would  hardly  have 
expected  from  so  small  a  vessel.  She  made  fully  two  knots' 
headway  in  the  worst  of  it,  and  in  general  her  rate  of  sail- 
iag,  close  on  a  wind  and  under  pretty  short  canvas,  was 
about  three.  The  night  was  very  dark,  and  there  was 
nothing  to  steer  by  but  the  wind,  which  gave  some  little 
embarrassment;  but  finding  himself  in  much  smoother 
water  than  he  had  been  all  the  previous  day,  about  mid 
night,  our  young  man  felt  satisfied  that  he  was  under  the 
lee  of  the  island,  and  at  no  great  distance  from  it.  He 
made  short  tacks  until  daylight,  when  the  huge  mass  hove 
up  out  of  the  departing  darkness,  within  a  mile  of  the  boat. 
It  only  remained  to  run  along  the  land  for  two  or  three 
miles,  and  to  enter  the  haven  of  Snug  Cove.  Mark  had 
been  telling  his  companions  what  a  secret  place  this  haven 
was  to  conceal  a  vessel  in,  when  he  had  a  practical  con 
firmation  of  the  truth  of  his  statement  that  caused  him  to 
be  well  laughed  at.  For  ten  minutes  he  could  not  discover 
the  entrance  himself,  having  neglected  to  take  the  proper 


208  THE   CRATER; 

land-marks,  that  he  might  have  no  difficulty  in  running  for 
his  port.  After  a  time,  however,  he  caught  sight  of  an 
object  that  he  remembered,  and  found  his  way  into  the 
cove.  Here  lay  the  little  namesake  of  his  pretty  wife,  just 
as  he  had  left  her,  the  true  Bridget  smiling  and  blushing 
as  the  young  husband  pointed  out  the  poor  substitute  he 
had  been  compelled  to  receive  for  herself,  only  ten  days 
earlier. 

Mark,  and  Socrates,  and  Dido,  and  Teresa,  Bigelow's 
wife,  all  carried  up  heavy  loads;  while  Heaton  had  as 
much  as  he  could  do  to  help  Anne  and  the  child  up  the 
sharp  acclivity.  Bridget,  with  her  light  active  step,  and 
great  eagerness  to  behold  a  scene  that  Mark  had  described 
with  so  much  eloquence,  was  the  first,  by  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,  on  the  plain.  When  the  others  reached  the  top, 
they  saw  the  charming  young  thing  running  about  in  the 
nearest  grove,  that  in  which  her  husband  had  dined,  col 
lecting  fruit,  and  apparently  as  enchanted  as  a  child.  Mark 
paused,  as  he  gained  the  height,  to  gaze  on  this  sight,  so 
agreeable  in  his  eyes,  and  which  rendered  the  place  so 
very  different  from  what  it  had  been  so  recently,  while  he 
was  in  possession  of  its  glorious  beauties,  a  solitary  man. 
Then,  he  had  several  times  likened  himself  to  Adam  in 
the  garden  of  Eden,  before  woman  was  given  to  him  for  a 
companion.  Now,  now  he  could  feast  his  eyes  on  an  Eve, 
who  would  have  been  highly  attractive  in  any  part  of  the 
world. 

The  articles  brought  up  on  the  plain,  at  this  first  trip, 
comprised  all  that  was  necessary  to  prepare  and  to  partake 
of  a  breakfast  in  comfort.  A  fire  was  soon  blazing,  the 
kettle  on,  and  the  bread-fruit  baking.  It  was  almost  pain 
ful  to  destroy  the  reed-birds,  or  becca  Jtcht,  so  numerous 
were  they,  and  so  confiding.  One  discharge  from  each 
barrel  of  the  fowling-piece  had  enabled  Heaton  to  bring  in 
enough  for  the  whole  party,  and  these  were  soon  roasting. 
Mark  had  brought  with  him  from  the  Reef,  a  basket  of 
fresh  eggs,  and  they  had  been  Bridget's  load,  in  ascending 
the  mountain.  He  had  promised  her  an  American  break 
fast,  and  these  eggs,  boiled,  did  serve  to  remind  everybody 
of  a  distant  home,  that  was  still  remembered  with  melan 
choly  pleasure.  A  heartier,  or  a  happier  meal,  notwith- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  209 

standing,  was  never  made  than  was  that  breakfast.  The 
mountain  air,  invigorating  though  bland,  the  exercise,  the 
absence  of  care,  the  excellence  of  the  food,  which  com 
prised  fresh  figs,  a  tree  or  two  of  tolerable  sweetness  having 
been  found,  the  milk  of  the  cocoa-nut,  the  birds,  the  eggs, 
the  bread-fruit,  &c.,  all  contributed  their  share  to  render 
the  meal  memorable. 

The  men,  and  the  three  labouring  women,  were  em 
ployed  two  days  in  getting  the  cargo  of  the  Neshamony 
up  on  the  plain ;  or  to  Eden,  as  Bridget  named  the  spot, 
unconscious  how  often  ishe  herself  had  been  likened  to  a 
lovely  Eve,  in  the  mind  of  her  young  husband.  Two  of 
the  marquees  had  been  brought,  and  were  properly  erected, 
having  board  floors,  arid  everything  comfortably  arranged 
within  and  without  them.  A  roof,  however,  was  scarcely 
necessary  in  that  delicious  climate,  where  one  could  get 
into  the  shade  of  a  grove;  'and  a  thatched  shed  was  easily 
prepared  for  a  dwelling  for  the  others.  By  the  end  of  the 
third  day  the  whole  party  in  Eden  was  comfortably  esta 
blished,  and  Mark  took  a  short  leave  of  his  bride,  to  sail 
for  Rancocus  again.  Bridget  shed  tears  at  this  separation, 
short  as  it  was  intended  to  be ;  and  numberless  were  the 
injunctions  to  be  wary  of  the  natives,  should  the  latter  have 
visited  Betts,  in  the  time  intervening  between  the  departure 
of  the  Neshamony  and  her  return. 

The  voyage  between  the  two  islands  lost  something  of 
its  gravity  each  time  it  was  made.  Mark  learned  a  little 
every  trip,  of  the  courses  to*  be  steered,  the  peculiarities 
of  the  currents,  and  the  height  of  the  seas.  He  ran  down 
to  Rancocus,  on  this  occasion,  in  three  hours'  less  time 
than  he  had  done  it  before,  sailing  at  dusk,  and  reaching 
port  next  day  at  noon.  Nothing  had  occurred,  and  to  work 
the  men  went  at  once,  to  load  the  pinnace.  Room  was 
left  for  one  of  the  cows  and  its  calf;  and  Bob  being  seri 
ously  impressed  with  the  importance  of  improving  every 
moment,  the  little  sloop  put  to  sea  again,  the  evening  of 
the  very  day  on  which  it  had  arrived. 

Bridget  was  standing  on  a  rock,  by  the  side  of  the  limpid 

water  of  the  cove,  when  the  Neshamony  shot  through  its 

entrance  into  the  little  haven,  and  her  hand  was  in  Mark's 

the  instant  he  landed.     Tears  gushed  into  the  eyes  of  the 

18* 


210  THE  CRATER; 

young  man  as  he  recalled  his  year  of  solitude,  and  felt  how 
different  was  such  a  welcome  from  his  many  melancholy 
arrivals  and  departures,  previously  to  the  recent  events. 

It  was  rather  a  troublesome  matter  to  get  the  cow  and 
calf  up  the  mountain.  The  first  did  not  see  enough  that 
was  attractive  in  naked  rocks,  to  induce  her  to  mount  in 
the  best  of  humours.  She  drank  freely,  however,  at  the 
brook,  appearing  to  relish  its  waters  particularly  well.  At 
length  the  plan  was  adopted  of  carrying  the  calf  up  a  good 
distance,  the  cries  of  the  little  thing  inducing  its  mother 
immediately  to  follow.  In  this  way  both  were  got  up  into 
Eden,  in  the  course  of  an  hour.  And  well  did  the  poor 
cow  vindicate  the  name,  when  she  got  a  look  at  the  broad 
glades  of  the  sweetest  grasses,  that  were  stretched  before 
her.  So  strongly  was  her  imagination  struck  with  the 
view — for  we  suppose  that  some  cows  have  even  more  ima 
gination  than  many  men — that  she  actually  kicked  up  her 
heels,  and  away  she  went,  head  down  and  tail  erect,  scam 
pering  athwart  the  sward  like  a  colt.  It  was  not  long, 
however,  before  she  began  to  graze,  the  voyage  having 
been  made  on  a  somewhat  short  allowance  of  both  food 
and  water.  If  there  ever  was  a  happy  animal,  it  was  that 
cow !  Her  troubles  were  all  over.  Sea-sickness,  dry  food, 
short  allowances  of  water,  narrow  lodgings,  and  hard  beds, 
were  all,  doubtless,  forgotten,  as  she  roamed  at  pleasure 
over  boundless  fields,  on  which  the  grass  was  perennial, 
seeming  never  to  be  longer  or  shorter  than  was  necessary 
to  give  a  good  bite;  and  among  which  numberless  rills  of 
the  purest  waters  were  sparkling  like  crystal.  The  great 
difficulty  in  possessing  a  dairy,  in  a  warm  climate,  is  the 
want  of  pasture,  the  droughts  usually  being  so  long  in  the 
summer  months.  At  Vulcan's  Peak,  however,  and  indeed 
in  all  of  that  fine  region,  it  rained  occasionally,  through 
out  the  year;  more  in  winter  than  in  summer,  and  that 
was  the  sole  distinction  in  the  seasons,  after  allowing  for  a 
trifling  change  in  the  temperature.  These  peculiarities 
appear  to  have  been  owing  to  the  direction  of  the  prevalent 
winds,  which  not  only  brought  frequent  showers,  but  which 
preserved  a  reasonable  degree  of  freshness  in  the  atmo 
sphere.  Within  the  crater,  Mark  had  often  found  the 
heat  oppressive,  even  in  the  shade ;  but,  without,  scarcely 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  211 

ever,  provided  his  body  was  not  directly  exposed  to  the 
sun's  rays.  Nor  was  the  difference  in  the  temperature 
between  the  Reef  and  the  Peak,  as  marked  as  might  have 
been  expected  from  the  great  elevation  of  the  last.  This 
was  owing  to  the  circumstance  that  the  sea  air,  and  that 
usually  in  swift  motion,  entered  so  intimately  into  the 
composition  of  the  atmosphere  down  on  that  low  range  of 
rocks,  imparting  its  customary  freshness  to  everything  it 
passed  over. 

Mark  did  not  make  the  next  trip  to  Rancocus.  By  this 
time  Anne  passed  half  the  day  in  the  open  air,  and  was  so 
fast  regaining  her  strength  that  Heaton  did  not  hesitate  to 
leave  her.  The  doctor  had  left  many  things  behind  him, 
that  he  much  wished  to  see  embarked  in  person,  and  he 
volunteered  to  be  the  companion  of  Socrates,  on  this  occa 
sion,  leaving  the  bridegroom  behind,  with  his  bride.  By 
this  time  Heaton  himself  was  a  reasonably  good  sailor,  and 
to  him  Mark  confided  the  instructions  as  to  the  course  to 
be  steered,  and  the  distance  to  be  run.  All  resulted  fa 
vourably,  the  Neshamony  making  the  trip  in  very  good 
time,  bringing  into  the  cove,  the  fourth  day  after  she  had 
sailed,  not  only  the  remaining  cow,  and  her  calf,  but  seve 
ral  of  the  goats.  Convinced  he  might  now  depend  on 
Heaton  and  Socrates  to  sail  the  pinnace,  and  Anne  ex 
pressing  a  perfect  willingness  to  remain  on  the  Peak,  in 
company  with  Teresa  and  Dido,  Mark  resolved  to  proceed 
to  the  crater  with  his  two  Bridgets,  feeling  the  propriety 
of  no  longer  neglecting  the  property  in  that  quarter  of  his 
dominions.  There  was  nothing  to  excite  apprehension, 
and  the  women  had  all  acquired  a  certain  amount  of  reso 
lution  that  more  properly  belonged  to  their  situation  than 
to  their  sex  or  nature.  Anne's  great  object  of  concern 
was  the  '  baby.'  As  long  as  that  was  safe,  everything  with 
her  was  going  on  well ;  and  Dido  being  a  renowned  baby 
doctor,  and  all  the  simples  for  a  child's  ailings  being  in  the 
possession  of  the  young  mother,  she  raised  no  objection 
whatever  to  her  brother's  quitting  her. 

Bridget  had  great  impatience  to  make  this  voyage,  for 
she  longed  to  see  the  spot  where  her  husband  had  passed 
so  many  days  in  solitude.  Everything  he  had  mentioned, 
in  their  many  conferences  on  this  subject,  was  already  fa- 


212  THE  CRATER; 

miliar  to  her  in  imagination;  but,  she  wished  to  become 
more  intimately  acquainted  with  each  and  all.  For  Kitty 
she  really  entertained  a  decided  fondness,  and  even  the 
pigs,  as  Mark's  companions,  had  a  certain  romantic  value 
in  her  eyes. 

The  morning  was  taken  for  the  departure,  and  just  as 
the  little  craft  got  out  from  under  the  lee  of  the  Peak,  and 
began  to  feel  the  true  breeze,  the  sun  rose  gloriously  out 
of  the  eastern  waves,  lighting  the  whole  of  the  blue  waters 
with  his  brilliant  rays.  Never  did  Vulcan's  Peak  appear 
more  grand  or  more  soft  —  for  grandeur  or  sublimity, 
blended  with  softness,  make  the  principal  charm  of  noble 
tropical  scenery — than  it  did  that  morning;  and  Bridget 
looked  up  at  the  dark,  overhanging  cliffs,  with  a  smile,  as 
she  said — 

"  We  may  love  the  Reef,  dear  Mark,  for  what  it  did  for 
you  in  your  distress,  but  I  foresee  that  this  Eden  will 
eventually  become  our  home." 

"  There  are  many  things  to  render  this  mountain  prefer 
able  to  the  Reef;  though,  now  we  are  seriously  thinking 
of  a  colony,  it  may  be  well  to  keep  both.  Even  Rancocus 
would  be  of  great  value  to  us,  as  a  pasture  for  goats,  and 
a  range  for  cattle.  It  may  be  long  before  the  space  will 
be  wanted  by  human  beings,  for  actual  cultivation ;  but 
each  of  our  present  possessions  is  now,  and  long  will  con 
tinue  to  be,  of  great  use  to  us  as  assistants.  We  shall  live 
principally  on  the  Peak,  I  think  myself;  but  we  must  fish, 
get  our  salt,  and  obtain  most  of  our  vegetables  from  the 
Reef." 

"  Oh !  that  Reef,  that  Reef— how  long  will  it  be,  Mark, 
before  we  see  it?" 

The  enamoured  young  husband  laughed,  and  kissed  his 
charming  wife,  and  told  her  to  restrain  her  impatience. 
Several  hours  must  elapse  before  they  could  even  come  in 
sight  of  the  rocks.  These  hours  did  pass,  and  with  the 
occurrence  of  no  event  worthy  of  being  recorded.  The 
Trades  usually  blew  fresh  in  that  quarter  of  the  ocean,  but 
it  was  seldom  that  they  brought  tempests.  Occasionally 
squalls  did  occur,  it  is  true;  but  a  prudent  and  experienced 
mariner  could  ordinarily  guard  against  their  consequences, 
while  the  hurricane  seldom  failed,  like  most  other  great 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  213 

physical  phenomena,  to  have  its  precursors,  that  were 
easily  seen  and  understood.  On  the  present  occasion,  the 
boat  ran  across  the  passage  in  very  good  time,  making  the 
crater  in  about  five  hours,  and  the  ship's  masts  in  six 
Mark  made  a  good  land-fall  coming  in  to  leeward  of  the 
cape,  or  low  promontory  already  mentioned — Cape  South 
he  called  it — while  there  still  remained  several  hours  of 
day.  Bridget  was  greatly  struck  with  the  vast  difference 
she  could  not  help  finding  between  the  appearance  of  these 
low,  dark,  and  so  often  naked  rocks,  and  that  of  the  Eden 
she  had  just  left.  Tears  came  into  her  eyes,  as  she  pic 
tured  her  husband  a  solitary  wanderer  over  these  wastes, 
with  no  water,  even,  but  that  which  fell  from  the  clouds, 
or  which  came  from  the  casks  of  the  ship.  When,  how 
ever,  she  gave  utterance  to  this  feeling,  one  so  natural  to 
her  situation,  Mark  told  her  to  have  patience  until  they 
reached  the  crater,  when  she  would  see  that  he  had  pos 
sessed  a  variety  of  blessings,  for  which  he  had  every  reason 
to  be  grateful  to  God. 

There  was  no  difficulty  in  getting  into  the  proper  chan 
nel,  when  the  boat  fairly  flew  along  the  rocks  that  lined 
the  passages.  So  long  as  she  was  in  rough  water,  the  sails 
of  so  small  a  craft  were  necessarily  becalmed  a  good  deal 
of  the  time;  but,  now  that  there  was  nothing  to  intercept 
the  breeze,  she  caught  it  all,  and  made  the  most  of  it.  To 
Mark's  surprise,  as  they  passed  the  Prairie,  he  saw  all  of 
his  swirie  on  it,  now,  including  two  half-unconsumed  litters 
of  well-grown  pigs,  some  seventeen  in  number.  These 
animals  had  actually  found  their  way  along  the  rocks,  a 
distance  of  at  least  twenty  miles  from  home,  and  by  the 
crooked  path  they  had  taken,  probable  one  much  greater. 
They  all  appeared  full,  and  contented.  So  much  of  the 
water  had  already  evaporated  as  to  make  it  tolerable  walk 
ing  on  the  sea-weed ;  and  Mark,  stopping  to  examine  the 
progress  of  things,  prognosticated  that  another  year,  in 
that  climate,  would  convert  the  whole  of  that  wide  plain 
into  dry  land.  In  many  places,  the  hogs  had  already  found 
their  way  down,  through  the  sea-weed,  into  the  mud ;  arid 
there  was  one  particular  spot,  quite  near  the  channel, 
where  the  water  was  all  gone,  and  where  the  pigs  had 
rooted  over  so  much  of  the  surface,  as  to  convert  two  or 


214  THE   CRATER; 

three  acres  into  a  sort  of  half-tilled  field,  in  which  the  sea* 
weed  was  nearly  turned  under  the  mud.  Nothing  but 
drenching  rains  were  wanting  to  render  such  a  place  highly 
productive,  and  it  was  certain  those  rains  would  come  at 
the  end  of  the  season. 

About  the  middle  of  the  day,  Mark  ran  the  boat  along 
side  of  the  Reef,  at  the  usual  landing,  and  welcomed 
Bridget  to  his  and  her  home,  with  a  kiss.  Everything 
was  in  its  place,  and  a  glance  sufficed  to  show  that  no 
human  foot  had  been  there,  during  the  weeks  of  his  absence. 
Kitty  was  browsing  on  the  Summit,  and  no  spaniel  could 
have  played  more  antics  than  she  did,  at  the  sight  of  her 
master.  At  first,  Mark  had  thought  of  transferring  this 
gentle  and  playful  young  goat  to  the  Peak,  and  to  place 
her  in  the  little  flock  collected  there;  but  he  had  been 
induced  to  change  his  mind,  by  recollecting  how  much  she 
contributed  to  the  beauty  of  the  Summit,  by  keeping  down 
the  grass.  He  had  therefore  brought  her  a  companion, 
which  had  no  sooner  been  landed  on  the  Reef,  than  it 
bounded  off  to  make  acquaintance  with  the  stranger  on 
the  elevation. 

Bridget  was  almost  overcome  when  she  got  on  board  the 
ship.  There  was  even  a  certain  sublimity  in  the  solitude 
that  reigned  over  everything,  that  impressed  her  imagina 
tion,  and  she  wondered  that  any  human  being  could  so 
long  have  dwelt  there  alone,  uncheered  by  the  hope  of  de 
liverance.  In  the  cabin  of  that  vessel  she  had  plighted  her 
faith  to  Mark,  and  a  flood  of  recollections  burst  upon  her 
as  she  entered  it.  Mark  was  obliged  to  allow  her  to  seek 
relief  in  tears.  But,  half  an  hour  brought  her  round  again, 
and  then  she  set  about  putting  things  in  order,  and  making 
this  very  important  abode  submit  to  the  influence  of  wo 
man's  love  of  comfort  and  order.  By  the  time  Mark  came 
back  from  his  garden,  whither  he  had  gone  to  ascertain  its 
condition,  Bridget  had  his  supper  ready  for  him,  prepared 
with  a  neatness  and  method  to  which  he  had  long  been  a 
stranger.  That  was  a  very  delicious  meal  to  both.  The 
husband  had  lighted  a  fire  in  the  galley,  where  the  wife 
had  cooked  the  meal,  which  consisted  principally  of  some 
pan-fish,  taken  in  the  narrow  channels  between  the  rocks, 
and  which  had  been  cleaned  by  Mark  himself,  as  they 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  215 

sailed  along.  It  was,  indeed,  a  great  point  of  solicitude 
with  this  young  husband  to  prevent  his  charming  wife  from 
performing  duties  for  which  she  was  unfitted  by  education, 
while  the  wife  herself  was  only  too  solicitous  to  make  her 
self  useful.  In  one  sense,  Bridget  was  a  very  knowing 
person  about  a  household.  She  knew  how  to  prepare 
many  savoury  compounds,  and  had  the  whole  culinary  art 
at  her  fingers'  ends,  in  the  way  of  giving  directions.  It 
was  no  wonder,  then,  that  Mark  found  everything  she 
touched,  or  prepared,  good,  as  everything  she  said  sounded 
pleasant  and  reasonable.  The  last  is  a  highly  important 
ingredient  in  matrimonial  life,  but  the  first  has  its  merit. 
And  Bridget  Woolston  was  both  pleasant  and  reasonable. 
Though  a  little  romantic,  and  inclined  to  hazard  all  for 
feeling,  and  what  she  conceived  to  be  duty,  at  the  bottom 
of  all  ran  a  vein  of  excellent  sense,  which  had  been  reason 
ably  attended  to.  Her  temper  was  sweetness  itself,  and 
that  is  one  of  the  greatest  requisites  in  married  happiness. 
To  this  great  quality  must  be  added  affection,  for  she  was 
devoted  to  Mark,  and  nothing  he  wished  would  she  hesi 
tate  about  striving  to  obtain,  even  at  painful  sacrifices  to 
herself.  One  as  generous-minded  and  manly  as  her  hus 
band,  could  not  fail  to  discover  and  appreciate  such  a  dis 
position,  which  entered  very  largely  into  the  composition 
of  their  future  happiness. 

Our  young  couple  did  not  visit  the  crater  and  the  Sum 
mit  until  the  sun  had  lost  most  of  its  power.  Then  Mark 
introduced  his  wife  into  his  garden,  and  to  his  lawn. 
Exclamations  of  delight  escaped  the  last,  at  nearly  every 
step;  for,  in  addition  to  the  accidental  peculiarities  of  such 
a  place,  the  vegetation  had  advanced,  as  vegetation  only 
can  advance  within  the  tropics,  favoured  by  frequent  rains 
and  a  rich  soil.  The  radishes  were  half  as  large  as  Brid 
get's  wrists,  and  as  tender  as  her  heart.  The  lettuce  was 
already  heading;  the  beans  were  fit  to  pull;  the  onions  large 
enough  to  boil,  and  the  peas  even  too  old.  On  the  Sum 
mit  Mark  cut  a  couple  of  melons,  which  were  of  a  flavour 
surpassing  any  he  had  ever  before  tasted.  With  that  spot 
Bridget  was  especially  delighted.  It  was,  just  then,  as 
green  as  grass  could  be,  and  Kitty  had  found  its  plants  so 
very  sweet,  that  she  had  scarce  descended  once  to  trespass 


216  THE  CRATER; 

on  the  garden.  Here  and  there  the  imprint  of  her  little 
hoof  was  to  be  traced  on  a  bed,  it  is  true,  but  she  appeared 
to  have  gone  there  more  to  look  after  the  condition  of  the 
garden  than  to  gratify  her  appetite. 

While  on  the  Summit,  Mark  pointed  out  to  his  wife  the 
fowls,  now  increased  to  something  like  fifty.  Two  or  three 
broods  of  chickens  had  come  within  the  last  month,  mak 
ing  their  living  on  the  reef  that  was  separated  from  that  of 
the  crater  by  means  of  the  bridge  of  planks.  As  two  or 
three  flew  across  the  narrow  pass,  however,  he  was  aware 
that  the  state  of  his  garden  must  be  owing  to  the  fact  that 
they  still  found  a  plenty  on  those  rocks  for  their  support. 
In  returning  to  the  ship,  he  visited  a  half-barrel  prepared 
for  that  purpose,  and,  as  he  expected,  found  a  nest  con 
taining  a  dozen  eggs.  These  he  took  the  liberty  of  appro 
priating  to  his  own  use,  telling  Bridget  that  they  could  eat 
some  of  them  for  their  breakfast. 

But  food  never  had  been  an  interest  to  give  our  solitary 
man  much  uneasiness.  From  the  hour  when  he  found 
muck,  and  sea-weed,  and  guano,  he  felt  assured  of  the 
means  of  subsistence;  being  in  truth,  though  he  may  not 
have  known  it  himself,  more  in  danger  of  falling  behind' 
hand,  in  consequence  of  the  indisposition  to  activity  th»t 
almost  ever  accompanies  the  abundance  of  a  warm  climate, 
than  from  the  absolute  want  of  the  means  of  advancing. 
That  night  Mark  and  Bridget  knelt,  side  by  side,  and  re 
turned  thanks  to  God  for  all  his  mercies.  How  sweet  the 
former  found  it  to  see  the  light  form  of  his  beautiful  com 
panion  moving  about  the  spacious  cabin,  giving  it  an  air 
of  home  and  happiness,  no  one  can  fully  appreciate  who 
has  not  been  cut  off  from  these  accustomed  joys,  and  then 
been  suddenly  restored  to  them. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.       217 


CHAPTER  XV. 

al  beg,  good  Heaven,  with  just  desires, 
What  need,  not  luxury,  requires  j 
Give  me,  with  sparing  hands,  but  moderate  wealth, 
A  little  honour,  and  enough  of  health; 

Free  from  the  busy  city  life, 
Near  shady  groves  and  purling  streams  confined, 

A  faithful  friend,  a  pleasing  wife  ; 
And  give  me  all  in  one,  give  a  contented  mind." 

AITOXTMOUS. 

MARK  and  Bridget  remained  at  the  Reef  a  week,  entirely 
alone.  To  them  the  time  seemed  but  a  single  day ;  and 
so  completely  were  they  engrossed  with  each  other,  and 
their  present  happiness,  that  they  almost  dreaded  the  hour 
of  return.  Everything  was  visited,  however,  even  to  the 
abandoned  anchor,  and  Mark  made  a  trip  to  the  eastward, 
carrying  his  wife  out  into  the  open  water,  in  that  direction. 
But  the  ship  and  the  crater  gave  Bridget  the  greatest  hap 
piness.  Of  these  she  never  tired,  though  the  first  gave  her 
the  most  pleasure.  A  ship  was  associated  with  all  her 
earliest  impressions  of  Mark ;  on  board  that  very  ship  she 
had  been  married ;  and  now  it  formed  her  home,  tempora 
rily,  if  not  permanently.  Bridget  had  been  living  so  long 
beneath  a  tent,  and  in  savage  huts,  that  the  accommoda 
tions  of  the  Rancocus  appeared  like  those  of  a  palace.  They 
were  not  inelegant  even,  though  it  was  not  usual,  in  that 
period  of  the  republic,  to  fit  up  vessels  with  a  magnificence 
little  short  of  royal  yachts,  as  is  done  at  present.  In  the 
way  of  convenience,  however,  our  ship  could  boast  of  a 
great  deal.  Her  cabins  were  on  deck,  or  under  a  poop, 
and  consequently  enjoyed  every  advantage  of  light  and  air. 
Beneath  were  store-rooms,  still  well  supplied  with  many 
articles  of  luxury,  though  time  was  beginning  to  make  its 
usual  inroads  on  their  qualities.  The  bread  was  not  quite 
as  sound  as  it  was  once,  nor  did  the  teas  retain  all  their 
strength  and  flavour.  But  the  sugar  was  just  as  sweet  as 
DP 


218  THE  CRATER; 

the  day  it  was  shipped,  and  in  the  coffee  there  was  no  ap 
parent  change.  Of  the  butter,  we  do  not  choose  to  say 
anything.  Bridget,  in  the  prettiest  manner  imaginable, 
declared  that  as  soon  as  she  could  set  Dido  at  work,  the 
store-rooms  should  be  closely  examined,  and  thoroughly 
cleaned.  Then  the  galley  made  such  a  convenient  and 
airy  kitchen !  Mark  had  removed  the  house,  the  awning 
answering  every  purpose,  and  his  wife  declared  that  it  was 
a  pleasure  to  cook  a  meal  for  him,  in  so  pleasant  a  place. 

The  first  dish  Bridget  ever  literally  cooked  for  Mark, 
with  her  own  hands,  or  indeed  for  any  one  else,  was  a 
mess  of  '  grass,'  as  it  was  the  custom  of  even  the  most 
polished  people  of  America  then  to  call  asparagus.  They 
had  gone  together  to  the  asparagus  bed  on  Loam  Island, 
and  had  found  the  plant  absolutely  luxuriating  in  its  fa 
vourite  soil.  The  want  of  butter  was  the  greatest  defect 
in  this  mess,  for,  to  say  the  truth,  Bridget  refused  the  ship's 
butter  on  this  occasion,  but  luckily,  enough  oil  remained 
to  furnish  a  tolerable  substitute.  Mark  declared  he  had 
never  tasted  anything  in  his  life  half  so  good ! 

At  the  end  of  the  week,  the  governor,  as  Heaton  had 
styled  Mark,  and  as  Bridget  had  begun  playfully  to  term 
him,  gave  the  opinion  that  it  was  necessary  for  them  to 
tear  themselves  away  from  their  paradise.  Never  before, 
most  certainly,  had  the  Reef  appeared  to  the  young  hus 
band  a  spot  as  delightful  as  he  now  found  it,  and  it  did 
seem  to  him  very  possible  for  one  to  pass  a  whole  life  on 
it  without  murmuring.  His  wife  again  and  again  assured 
him  she  had  never  before  been  half  as  happy,  and  that, 
much  as  she  loved  Anne  and  the  baby,  she  could  remain 
a  month  longer,  without  being  in  the  least  wearied.  But 
it  was  prudent  to  return  to  the  Peak,  for  Mark  had  never 
felt  his  former  security  against  foreign  invasion,  since  he 
was  acquainted  with  the  proximity  of  peopled  islands. 

The  passage  was  prosperous,  and  it  gave  the  scene  an 
air  of  civilization  and  life,  to  fall  in  with  the  Neshamony 
off  the  cove.  She  was  coming  in  from  Rancocus,  on  her 
last  trip  for  the  stores,  having  brought  everything  away 
but  two  of  the  goats.  These  had  been  driven  up  into  the 
mountains,  and  there  left.  Bigelow  had  come  away,  and 
the  whole  party  of  colonists  were  now  assembled  at  VuJ- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  219 

can's  Peak.  But  Betts  had  a  communication  to  make  that 
gave  the  governor  a  good  deal  of  concern.  He  reported 
that  after  they  had  got  the  pinnace  loaded,  and  were  only 
waiting  for  the  proper  time  of  day  to  quit  Rancocus,  they 
discovered  a  fleet  of  canoes  and  catamarans,  approaching 
the  island  from  the  direction  of  the  Group,  as  they  fami 
liarly  termed  the  cluster  of  islands  that  was  known  to  be 
nearest  to  them,  to  the  northward  and  westward.  By 
means  of  a  glass,  Betts  had  ascertained  that  a  certain 
Waally  was  on  board  the  leading  canoe,  and  he  regarded 
this  as  an  evil  omen.  Waally  was  Ooroony's  most  formi 
dable  rival  and  most  bitter  foe ;  and  the  circumstance  that 
he  was  leading  such  a  flotilla,  of  itself,  Bob  thought,  was 
an  indication  that  he  had  prevailed  over  honest  Betto,  in 
some  recent  encounter,  and  was  now  abroad,  bent  on  fur 
ther  mischief.  Indeed,  it  seemed  scarcely  possible  that 
men  like  the  natives  should  hear  of  the  existence  of  such 
a  mountain  as  that  of  Rancocus  Island,  in  their  vicinity, 
and  not  wish  to  explore,  if  not  to  possess  it. 

Betts  had  pushed  off,  and  made  sail,  as  soon  as  assured 
of  this  fact.  He  knew  the  pinnace  could  outsail  anything 
the  islanders  possessed,  more  especially  on  a  wind,  and  he 
manoeuvred  about  the  flotilla  for  an  hour,  making  his  ob 
servations,  before  he  left  it.  This  was  clearly  a  war  party, 
and  Bob  thought  there  were  white  men  in  it.  At  least, 
he  saw  two  individuals  who  appeared  to  him  to  be  white 
sailors,  attired  in  a  semi-savage  way,  and  who  were  in  the 
same  canoe  with  the  terrible  Waally.  It  was  nothing  out 
of  the  way  for  seamen  to  get  adrift  on  the  islands  scattered 
about  in  the  Pacific,  there  being  scarcely  a  group  in  which 
more  or  less  of  them  are  not  to  be  found.  The  presence 
of  these  men,  too,  Bob  regarded  as  another  evil  omen,  and 
he  felt  the  necessity  of  throwing  all  the  dust  he  could  into 
their  eyes.  When  the  pinnace  left  the  flotilla,  therefore, 
instead  of  passing  out  to  windward  of  the  island,  as  was 
her  true  course,  she  steered  in  an  almost  contrary  direc 
tion,  keeping  off  well  to  leeward  of  the  land,  in  order  not 
to  get  becalmed  under  the  heights,  for  Bob  well  knew  the 
canoes,  with  paddles,  would  soon  overhaul  him,  should  he 
lose  the  wind. 

It  was  the  practice  of  our  colonists  to  quit  Rancocus 


220  THE  CRATER; 

just  before  the  sun  set,  and  to  stand  all  night  on  a  south 
east  course.  This  invariably  brought  them  in  sight  of  the 
smoke  of  the  volcano  by  morning,  and  shortly  after  they 
made  the  Peak.  All  of  the  day  that  succeeded,  was  com 
monly  passed  in  beating  up  to  the  v.  )lcano,  or  as  near  to  it 
as  it  was  thought  prudent  to  go;  and  tacking  to  the  north 
ward  and  eastward,  about  sunset  of  the  second  day,  it  was 
found  on  the  following  morning,  that  the  Neshamony  was 
drawing  near  to  the  cliffs  of  Vulcan's  Peak,  if  she  were 
not  already  beneath  them.  As  a  matter  of  course,  then, 
Bob  had  not  far  to  go,  before  night  shut  in,  and  left  him 
at  liberty  to  steer  in  whatever  direction  he  pleased.  For 
tunately,  that  night  had  no  moon,  though  there  was  not 
much  danger  of  so  small  a  craft  as  the  Neshamony  being 
seen  at  any  great  distance  on  the  water,  even  by  moonlight. 
Bob  consequently  determined  to  beat  up  off  the  north  end 
of  the  island,  or  Low  Cape,  as  it  was  named  by  the  colo 
nists,  from  the  circumstance  of  its  having  a  mile  or  two 
of  low  land  around  it,  before  the  mountains  commenced. 
Once  off  the  cape  again,  and  reasonably  well  in,  he  might 
possibly  make  discoveries  that  would  be  of  use. 

It  took  two  or  three  hours  to  regain  the  lost  ground,  by 
beating  to  windward.  By  eleven  o'clock,  however,  the 
Neshamony  was  not  only  off  the  cape,  but  quite  close  in 
with  the  landing.  The  climate  rendering  fires  altogether 
unnecessary  at  that  season,  and  indeed  at  nearly  all  sea 
sons,  except  for  cooking,  Bob  could  not  trace  the  encamp 
ment  of  the  savages,  by  that  means.  Still,  he  obtained 
all  the  information  he  desired.  This  was  not  done,  how 
ever,  without  great  risk,  and  by  a  most  daring  step  on  his 
part.  He  lowered  the  sails  of  the  boat  and  went  alongside 
of  the  rock,  where  the  pinnace  usually  came  to,  the  canoes, 
&c.,  having  made  another,  and  a  less  eligible  harbour. 
Bob  then  landed  in  person,  and  stole  along  the  shore  in  the 
direction  of  the  sleeping  savages.  Unknown  to  himself,  he 
was  watched,  and  was  just  crouching  under  some  bushes, 
in  order  to  get  a  little  nearer,  when  he  felt  a  hand  on  his 
shoulder.  There  was  a  moment  when  blood  was  in  danger 
of  being  shed,  but  Betts's  hand  was  stayed  by  hearing,  in 
good  English,  the  words — 

"Where  are  yon  bound,  shipmate?" 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  221 

This  question  was  asked  in  a  guarded,  under-tone,  a 
circumstance  that  reassured  Bob,  quite  as  much  as  the 
language.  He  at  once  perceived  that  the  two  men  whom 
he  had,  rightly  enough,  taken  for  seamen,  were  in  these 
bushes,  where  it  would  seem  they  had  long  been  on  the 
watch,  observing  the  movements  of  the  pinnace.  They 
told  Bob  to  have  no  apprehensions,  as  all  the  savages  were 
asleep,  at  some  little  distance,  and  accompanied  him  back 
to  the  Neshamony.  Here,  to  the  surprise  and  joy  of  all 
parties,  Bigelow  recognised  both  the  sailors,  who  had  not 
only  been  his  former  shipmates,  but  were  actually  his 
townsmen  in  America,  the  whole  three  having  been  born 
within  a  mile  of  each  other.  The  history  of  these  three 
wanderers  from  home  was  very  much  alike.  They  had 
come  to  the  Pacific  in  a  whaler,  with  a  drunken  captain, 
and  had,  in  succession,  left  the  ship.  Bigelow  found  his 
way  to  Panama,  where  he  was  caught  by  the  dark  eyes  of 
Theresa,  as  has  been  related.  Peters  had  fallen  in  with 
Jones,  in  the  course  of  his  wanderings,  and  they  had  been 
for  the  last  two  years  among  the  pearl  islands,  undecided 
what  to  do  with  themselves,  when  Waally  ordered  both  to 
accompany  him  in  the  present  expedition.  They  had  ga 
thered  enough  in  hints  given  by  different  chiefs,  to  under 
stand  that  a  party  of  Christians  was  to  be  massacred,  or 
enslaved,  and  plundered  of  course.  They  had  heard  of 
the  *  canoe'  that  had  been  tabooed  for  twelve  moons,  but 
were  at  a  loss  to  comprehend  one-half  of  the  story,  and 
were  left  to  the  most  anxious  conjectures.  They  were  not 
permitted  to  pass  on  to  the  islands  under  the  control  of 
Ooroony,  but  were  jealously  detained  in  Waally's  part  of 
the  group,  and  consequently  had  not  been  in  a  situation 
to  learn  all  the  particulars  of  the  singular  party  of  colo 
nists  who  had  gone  to  the  southward.  Thus  much  did 
Peters  relate,  in  substance,  when  a  call  among  the  savages 
notified  the  whole  of  the  whites  of  the  necessity  of  coming 
to  some  conclusion  concerning  the  future.  Jones  and 
Peters  acknowledged  it  would  not  be  safe  to  remain  any 
longer,  though  the  last  gave  his  opinion  with  an  obvious 
reluctance.  As  it  afterwards  appeared,  Peters  had  married 
an  Indian  wife,  to  whom  he  was  much  attached,  and  he 
did  not  like  the  idea  of  abandoning  her.  There  was  but 
19* 


222  THE  CRATER; 

a  moment  for  reflection,  however,  and  almost  without 
knowing  it  himself,  when  he  found  the  pinnace  about  to 
make  sail  in  order  to  get  off  the  land,  he  followed  Jones 
into  her,  and  was  half  a  mile  from  the  shore  before  he  had 
time  to  reflect  much  on  her  he  had  left  behind  him.  His 
companion  consoled  him  by  telling  him  that  an  opportunity 
might  occur  of  sending  a  message  to  Petrina,  as  they  had 
named  the  pretty  young  savage,  who  would  not  fail  to  find 
her  way  to  Rancocus,  sooner  or  later. 

With  these  important  accessions  to  his  forces,  Bob  did 
not  hesitate  about  putting  to  sea,  leaving  Waally  to  make 
what  discoveries  he  might.  Should  the  natives  ascend  to 
the  higher  parts  of  the  mountain,  they  could  hardly  fail  to 
see  both  the  smoke  of  the  volcano  and  the  Peak,  though  it 
would  luckily  not  be  in  their  power  to  see  the  Reef,  or  any 
part  of  that  low  group  of  rocks.  It  was  very  possible  they 
might  attempt  to  cross  the  passage  between  the  two  moun 
tains,  though  the  circumstance  that  Vulcan's  Peak  Jay  so 
directly  to  windward  of  Rancocus  offered  a  very  serious 
obstacle  to  their  succeeding.  Had  the  two  sailors  remained 
with  them,  they,  indeed,  might  have  taught  the  Indians  to 
overcome  the  winds  and  waves ;  but  these  very  men  were 
of  opinion,  from  what  they  had  seen  of  the  natives  and  of 
their  enterprises,  that  it  rather  exceeded  their  skill  and 
perseverance,  to  work  their  canoes  a  hundred  miles  dead 
to  windward,  and  against  the  sea  that  was  usually  on  in 
that  quarter  of  the  Pacific. 

The  colonists,  generally,  gave  the  two  recruits  a  very 
welcome  reception.  Bridget  smiled  when  Mark  suggested 
that  Jones,  who  was  a  well-looking  lad  enough,  would 
make  a  very  proper  husband  for  Joan,  and  that  he  doubted 
not  his  being  called  on,  in  his  character  of  magistrate,  to 
unite  them  in  the  course  of  the  next  six  months.  The 
designs  of  the  savages,  however,  caused  the  party  to  think 
of  anything  but  weddings,  just  at  that  moment,  and  a 
council  was  held  to  devise  a  plan  for  their  future  govern 
ment.  As  Mark  was  considered  the  head  of  the  colony,  and 
had  every  way  the  most  experience,  his  opinion  swayed 
those  of  his  companions,  and  all  his  recommendations  were 
adopted.  There  were  on  board  the  ship  eight  carronades, 
then  quite  a  new  gun,  and  mounted  on  trucks.  They 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  223 

were  of  the  bore  of  twelve-pounders,  but  light  and  manage 
able.  There  was  also  abundance  of  ammunition  in  the 
vessel's  magazine,  no  ship  coming  to  the  Fejees  to  trade 
without  a  proper  regard  to  the  armament.  Mark  proposed 
going  over  to  the  Reef  with  the  Neshamony,  the  very  next 
day,  in  order  to  transport  two  of  the  guns,  with  a  proper 
supply  of  powder  and  shot,  to  the  Peak.  Now  there  was 
one  place  on  the  path,  or  Stairs,  where  it  would  be  easy 
to  defend  the  last  against  an  army,  the  rocks,  which  were 
absolutely  perpendicular  on  each  side  of  it,  coming  so  close 
together,  as  to  render  it  practicable  to  close  the  passage 
by  a  narrow  gate.  This  gate  Mark  did  not  purpose  to 
erect  now,  for  he  thought  it  unnecessary.  All  he  intended 
was  to  plant  the  two  guns  at  this  pass ;  one  on  a  piece  of 
level  rock  directly  over  it,  and  a  little  on  one  side,  which 
would  command  the  entrance  of  the  cove,  and  the  cove 
itself,  as  well  as  the  whole  of  the  path  beneath,  and  the 
other  on  another  natural  platform,  a  short  distance  above, 
where  it  could  not  only  command  the  pass,  but,  by  using 
the  last  as  a  sort  of  embrasure,  by  firing  through  it,  could 
not  only  sweep  the  ravine  for  some  distance  down,  but 
could  also  rake  the  entrance  of  the  cove,  and  quite  half  of 
the  little  basin  itself. 

Bob  greatly  approved  of  this  arrangement,  though  all 
the  seamen  were  too  much  accustomed  to  obey  their  offi 
cers  to  raise  the  smallest  objections  to  anything  that  Mark 
proposed.  Betts  was  the  only  person  who  had  made  the 
circuit  of  the  Peak;  but  he,  and  Mark,  and  Heaton,  who 
had  been  a  good  deal  round  the  cliffs,  on  the  side  of  the 
water,  all  agreed  in  saying  they  did  not  believe  it  possible 
for  a  human  being  to  reach  the  plain,  unless  the  ascent 
was  made  by  the  Stairs.  This,  of  course,  rendered  the 
fortifying  of  the  last  a  matter  of  so  much  the  greater  im 
portance,  since  it  converted  the  whole  island  into  a  second 
Gibraltar.  It  was  true,  the  Reef  would  remain  exposed 
to  depredations;  though  Mark  was  of  opinion  that,  by 
leaving  a  portion  of  their  force  in  the  ship,  with  two  or 
three  of  the  guns  at  command,  it  would  not  be  difficult  to 
beat  off  five  hundred  natives.  As  for  the  crater,  it  might 
very  easily  be  made  impregnable. 

At  this  meeting  Heaton  proposed  the  establishment  of 


224  THE  CRATER; 

some  sort  of  government  and  authority,  which  they  should 
all  solemnly  swear  to  support.  The  idea  was  favourably 
received,  and  Mark  was  unanimously  chosen  governor  for 
life,  the  law  being  the  rule  of  right,  with  such  special  en 
actments  as  might,  from  time  to  time,  issue  from  a  council 
of  three,  who  were  also  elected  for  life.  This  council 
consisted  of  the  governor,  Heaton,  and  Betts.  Human 
society  has  little  difficulty  in  establishing  itself  on  just 
principles,  when  the  wants  .are  few  and  interests  simple. 
It  is  the  bias  given  by  these  last  that  perverts  it  from  the 
true  direction.  In  our  island  community,  most  of  its  citi 
zens  were  accustomed  to  think  that  education  and  practice 
gave  a  man  certain  claims  to  control,  and,  as  yet,  dema- 
gogueism  had  no  place  with  them.  A  few  necessary  rules, 
that  were  connected  with  their  particular  situation,  were 
enacted  by  the  council  and  promulgated,  when  the  meeting 
adjourned.  Happily  they  were  as  yet  far,  very  far  from 
that  favourite  sophism  of  the  day,  which  would  teach  the 
inexperienced  to  fancy  it  an  advantage  to  a  legislator  to 
commence  his  career  as  low  as  possible  on  the  scale  of 
ignorance,  in  order  that  he  might  be  what  it  is  the  fashion 
to  term  "  a  self-made  man." 

Mark  now  took  the  command,  and  issued  his  orders 
with  a  show  of  authority.  His  attention  was  first  turned 
to  rendering  the  Peak  impregnable.  There  were  a  plenty 
of  muskets  and  fowling-pieces  already  there,  Heaton  hav 
ing  come  well  provided  with  arms  and  ammunition.  As 
respects  the  last,  Peters  and  Jones  were  set  to  work  to 
clear  out  a  sort  of  cavern  in  the  rock,  that  was  not  only 
of  a  convenient  size,  but  which  was  conveniently  placed 
for  such  a  purpose,  at  no  great  distance  from  the  head  of 
the  Stairs,  to  receive  the  powder,  &,c.  The  cavity  was 
perfectly  dry,  an  indispensable  requisite,  and  it  was  equally 
well  protected  against  the  admission  of  water. 

The  next  thing  was  to  collect  a  large  pile  of  dry  wood 
on  the  naked  height  of  the  Peak.  This  was  to  be  lighted, 
at  night,  in  the  event  of  the  canoes  appearing  while  he 
was  absent,  Mark  being  of  opinion  that  he  could  see  such 
a  beacon-fire  from  the  Reef,  whither  he  was  about  to  pro 
ceed.  Having  made  these  arrangements,  the  governor  set 
sail  with  Betts,  Bigelow,  and  Socrates  for  his  companions, 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  225 

leaving  Heaton,  with  Peters  and  Jones,  to  take  care  of 
most  of  the  females.  We  say  of  most,  since  Dido  and 
Juno  went  along,  in  order  to  cook,  and  to  wash  all  the 
clothes  of  the  whole  colony,  a  part  of  which  were  sent  in 
the  pinnace,  but  most  of  which  were  on  board  the  ship. 
This  was  a  portion  of  his  duty,  when  a  solitary  man,  to 
which  Mark  was  exceedingly  averse,  and  having  shirts  al 
most  ad  libitum,  Bridget  had  found  nearly  a  hundred  ready 
for  the  '  buck-basket.'  There  was  no  danger,  therefore, 
that  the  '  wash'  would  be  too  small. 

Betts  was  deeply  impressed  with  the  change  that  he 
found  in  the  rocks.  There,  where  he  had  left  water  over 
which  he  had  often  floated  his  raft,  appeared  dry  land. 
Nor  was  he  much  less  struck  with  the  appearance  of  the 
crater.  It  was  now  a  hill  of  a  bright,  lively  verdure,  Kitty 
and  her  new  friend  keeping  it  quite  as  closely  cropped  as 
was  desirable.  The  interior,  too,  struck  him  forcibly ;  for 
there,  in  addition  to  the  garden,  now  flourishing,  though  a 
little  in  want  of  the  hoe,  was  a  meadow  of  acres  in  extent, 
in  which  the  grass  was  fit  to  cut.  Mark  had  observed  this 
circumstance  when  last  at  the  crater,  and  Socrates  had 
brought  his  scythe  and  forks,  to  cut  and  cure  the  hay. 

The  morning  after  the  arrival,  everybody  went  to  work. 
The  women  set  up  their  tubs,  under  an  awning  spread  for 
that  purpose,  near  the  spring,  and  were  soon  up  to  their 
elbows  in  suds.  The  scythe  was  set  in  motion,  and  the 
pinnace  was  taken  round  to  the  ship.  Three  active  sea 
men  soon  hoisted  out  the  carronades,  and  stowed  them  in 
the  little  sloop.  The  ammunition  followed,  and  half-a- 
dozen  barrels  of  the  beef  and  pork  were  put  in  the  Nesha- 
mony  also.  Mark  scarcely  ever  touched  this  food  now, 
the  fish,  eggs,  chickens,  a»d  pigs,  keeping  his  larder  suffi 
ciently  well  supplied.  But  some  of  the  men  pined  for 
ship's  provisions,  beef  and  pork  that  had  now  been  packed 
more  than  two  years,  and  the  governor  thought  it  might 
be  well  enough  to  indulge  them.  The  empty  barrels  would 
be  convenient  on  the  Peak,  and  the  salt  would  be  accept 
able,  after  being  dried  and  pulverized. 

The  day  was  passed  in  loading  the  Neshamony,  and  in 
looking  after  various  interests  on  the  Reef.  The  hogs  had 
all  come  in,  and  were  fed.  Mark  shot  one,  and  had  it 


226  THE   CRATER; 

dressed,  putting  most  of  its  meat  into  the  pinnace.  He 
also  sent  Bob  out  to  his  old  place  of  resort,  near  Loam 
Island,  whence  he  brought  back  near  a  hundred  hog-fish. 
These  were  divided,  also,  some  being  given  to  Dido's  mess, 
and  the  rest  put  in  the  pinnace,  after  taking  out  enough 
for  a  good  supper.  About  ten  at  night  the  Neshamony 
sailed,  Mark  carrying  her  out  into  the  open  water,  when 
he  placed  Bob  at  the  helm.  Bigelow  had  remained  in  the 
ship,  to  overhaul  the  lumber,  of  which  there  were  still  large 
piles  both  betwixt  decks  and  in  the  lower  hold,  as  did  the 
whole  of  the  Socrates  family,  who  were  yet  occupied  with 
the  hay  harvest  and  the  '  wash.'  Before  he  lay  down  to 
catch  his  nap,  Mark  took  a  good  look  to  the  southward, 
in  quest  of  the  beacon,  but  it  was  not  burning,  a  sign  the 
savages  had  not  appeared  in  the  course  of  the  day.  With 
this  assurance  he  fell  asleep,  and  slept  until  informed  by 
Bob  that  the  pinnace  was  running  in  beneath  the  cliffs. 
Betts  called  him,  because  the  honest  fellow  was  absolutely 
at  a  loss  to  know  where  to  find  the  entrance  of  the  cove. 
So  closely  did  the  rocks  lap,  that  this  mouth  of  the  har 
bour  was  most  effectually  concealed  from  all  but  those 
who  happened  to  get  quite  close  in  with  the  cliffs,  and  in 
a  particular  position.  Mark,  himself,  had  caught  a  glimpse 
of  this  narrow  entrance  accidentally,  on  his  first  voyage, 
else  might  he  have  been  obliged  to  abandon  the  hope  of 
getting  on  the  heights ;  for  subsequent  examination  showed 
that  there  was  but  that  one  spot,  on  the  whole  circuit  of 
Vulcan's  Peak,  where  man  could  ascend  to  the  plain,  with 
out  having  recourse  to  engineering  and  the  labour  of 
months,  if  not  of  years. 

Bob  had  brought  along  one  of  the  two  swivels  of  the 
ship,  as  an  armament  for  the  Neshamony,  and  he  fired  it 
under  the  cliffs,  as  a  signal  of  her  return.  This  brought 
down  all  the  men,  who,  with  their  united  strength,  dragged 
the  carronades  up  the  Stairs,  and  placed  them  in  position. 
With  a  view  to  scale  the  guns,  the  governor  now  had  each 
loaded,  with  a  round  shot  and  a  case  of  canister.  The 
gun  just  above  the  pass,  he  pointed  himself,  at  the  entrance 
of  the  cove,  and  touched  it  off.  The  whole  of  the  missiles 
went  into  the  passage,  making  the  water  fairly  foam  again. 
The  other  gun  was  depressed  so  as  to  sweep  the  Stairs 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  227 

and,  on  examination,  it  was  found  that  its  shot  had  raked 
the  path  most  effectually  for  a  distance  exceeding  a  hun 
dred  yards.  Small  magazines  were  made  in  the  rocks, 
near  each  gu$,  when  the  most  important  part  of  the  ar 
rangements  for  defence  were  considered  to  be  satisfactorily 
made  for  the  present.  The  remainder  of  the  cargo  was 
discharged,  and  got  up  the  mountain,  though  it  took  three 
days  to  effect  the  last.  The  provisions  were  opened  be 
low  and  overhauled,  quite  one-half  of  the  pork  being  con 
signed  to  the  soap-fat,  though  the  beef  proved  to  be  still 
sound  and  sweet.  Such  as  was  thought  fit  to  be  consumed 
was  carried  up  in  baskets,  and  re-packed  on  the  mountain, 
the  labour  of  rolling  up  the  barrels  satisfying  everybody, 
after  one  experiment.  This  difficulty  set  Mark  to  work 
with  his  wits,  and  he  found  a  shelf  that  overhung  the  land 
ing,  at  a  height  of  fully  a  hundred  yards  above  it,  where 
there  was  a  natural  platform  of  rock,  that  would  suffice  for 
the  parade  of  a  regiment  of  men.  Here  he  determined  to 
rig  a  derrick,  for  there  was  an  easy  ascent  and  descent  to 
this  '  platform,'  as  the  place  was  called,  and  down  which  a 
cart  might  go  without  any  difficulty,  if  a  cart  was  to  be 
had.  The  '  platform'  might  also  be  used  for  musketeers, 
in  an  action,  and  on  examining  it,  Mark  determined  to 
bring  over  one  of  the  two  long  sixes,  and  mount  it  there, 
with  a  view  to  command  the  offing.  From  that  height  a 
shot  could  be  thrown  in  any  direction,  for  more  than  a 
mile,  outside  of  the  harbour. 

Heaton  had  seen  no  signs  of  the  canoes,  nor  could  Mark, 
at  any  time  during  the  next  four  days  after  his  return, 
though  he  was  each  day  on  the  Peak  itself,  to  examiue  the 
ocean.  On  the  fifth  day,  therefore,  he  and  Bob  crossed 
over  to  the  Reef  again,  taking  Bridget  along  this  time. 
The  latter  delighted  in  the  ship,  the  cabins  of  wmcn  were 
so  much  more  agreeable  and  comfortable  than  the  tents, 
and  which  had  so  long  been  her  husband's  solitary  abode. 

On  reaching  the  Reef,  the  governor  was  greatly  sur 
prised  to  find  that  Bigelow  had  the  frame  of  a  boat  even 
larger  than  the  pinnace  set  up,  one  that  measured  fourteen 
tons,  though  modelled  to  carry,  rather  than  to  sail.  In 
overhauling  the  'stuff'  in  the  ship,  he  had  found  not  only 
all  the  materials  for  this  craft,  but  those  necessary  for  a 
boat  a  little  larger  than  the  Bridget,  which,  it  seems,  had 


228  THE  CRATER; 

been  sent  for  the  ordinary  service  of  the  ship,  should  any 
thing  occur  to  occasion  the  loss  of  the  two  she  commonly 
used,  in  addition  to  the  dingui.  These  were  treasures, 
indeed,  vessels  of  this  size  being  of  the  utmost  use  to  the 
colonists.  For  the  next  month,  several  hands  were  kept 
at  work  on  these  two  boats,  when  both  were  got  into  the 
water,  rigged,  and  turned  over  for  duty.  The  largest  boat 
of  the  little  fleet,  which  had  no  deck  at  all,  not  even  for 
ward,  and  which  was  not  only  lighter-built  but  lighter- 
rigged,  having  one  large  sprit-sail  that  brailed,  was  called  the 
Mary,  in  honour  of  Heaton's  mother ;  while  the  jolly-boat 
carried  joy  to  the  hearts  of  the  house  of  Socrates,  by  being 
named  the  Dido.  As  she  was  painted  black  as  a  crow, 
this  appellation  was  not  altogether  inappropriate,  Soc  de 
claring,  "  dat  'e  boat  did  a  good  deal  favour  his  ole  woman." 

While  these  things  were  in  progress,  the  Neshamony 
was  not  idle.  She  made  six  voyages  between  the  Reef 
and  the  Peak  in  that  month,  carrying  to  the  last,  fish,  fresh 
pork,  various  necessaries  from  the  ship,  as  well  as  eggs  and 
salt.  Some  of  the  fowls  were  caught  and  transferred  to 
the  Peak,  as  well  as  half-a-dozen  of  the  porkers.  The 
return  cargo  consisted  of  reed-birds,  in  large  quantities, 
several  other  varieties  of  birds,  bread-fruits,  bananas,  yams, 
cocoa-nuts,  and  a  fruit  that  Heaton  discovered,  which  was  of 
a  most  delicious  flavour,  resembling  strawberries  and  cream, 
and  which  was  afterwards  ascertained  to  be  the  charra- 
moya,  the  fruit  that,  of  all  others,  when  good,  is  thought 
to  surpass  everything  else  of  that  nature.  Bridget  also 
picked  a  basket  of  famously  large  wild  strawberries  on  the 
Summit,  and  sent  them  to  Anne.  In  return,  Anne  sent 
her  sister,  not  only  cream  and  milk,  by  each  passage,  but 
a  little  fresh  butter.  The  calves  had  been  weaned,  and 
the  two  cows  were  now  giving  their  largest  quantity  of 
milk,  furnishing  almost  as  much  butter  as  was  wanted. 

At  the  crater,  Socrates  put  everything  in  order.  He 
mowed  the  grass,  and  made  a  neat  stack  of  it,  in  the  centre 
of  the  meadow.  He  cleaned  the  garden  thoroughly,  and 
made  some  arrangements  for  enlarging  it,  though  the  yield, 
now,  was  quite  as  great  as  all  the  colonists  could  consume ; 
for,  no  sooner  was  one  vegetable  dug,  or  cut,  than  another 
was  put  in  its  place.  On  the  Peak,  Peters,  who  was  half 
a  farmer,  dug  over  an  acre  or  two  of  rich  loam,  and  made 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  229 

a  fence  of  brush,  with  a  view  of  having  a  garden  in  Eden. 
Really,  it  almost  seemed  superfluous;  though  those  who 
had  been  accustomed  to  salads,  and  beans,  and  beets,  and 
onions,  and  cucumbers,  and  all  the  other  common  vegeta 
bles  of  a  civilized  kitchen,  soon  began  to  weary  of  the 
more  luscious  fruits  of  the  tropics.  With  the  wild  figs, 
however,  Heaton,  who  was  a  capital  horticulturist,  fancied 
he  could  do  something.  He  picked  out  three  or  four 
thriving  young  trees  of  that  class,  which  bore  fruit  a  little 
better  flavoured  than  most  around  them,  and  cut  away  all 
their  neighbours,  letting  in  the  sun  and  air  freely.  He 
also  trimmed  their  branches,  and  dug  around  the  roots, 
which  he  refreshed  with  guano;  the  use  of  which  had  been 
imparted  by  Mark  to  his  fellow-colonists,  though  Bigelow 
knew  all  about  it  from  having  lived  in  Peru,  and  Bob  had 
early  let  the  governor  himself  into  the  secret. 

The  governor  and  his  lady,  as  the  community  now  began 
to  term  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mark  Woolston,  were  on  the  point 
of  embarking  in  the  Neshamony,  to  visit  Vulcan's  Peak, 
after  a  residence  on  the  Reef  of  more  than  a  month,  when 
the  orders  for  sailing  were  countermanded,  in  consequence 
of  certain  signs  in  the  atmosphere,  which  indicated  some 
thing  like  another  hurricane.  The  tempest  came,  and  in 
good  earnest,  but  without  any  of  the  disastrous  conse 
quences  which  had  attended  that  of  the  previous  year.  It 
blew  fearfully,  and  the  water  was  driven  into  all  the  sounds, 
creeks,  channels  and  bays  of  the  group,  bringing  many  of 
the  islands,  isthmuses,  peninsulas,  and  plains  of  rock,  what 
the  seamen  call  (  awash,'  though  no  material  portion  was 
actually  overflowed.  At  the  Reef  itself,  the  water  rose 
a  fathom,  but  it  did  not  reach  the  surface  of  the  island  by 
several  feet,  and  all  passed  off  without  any  other  conse 
quences  than  giving  the  new  colonists  a  taste  of  the  cli 
mate. 

Mark,  on  this  occasion,  for  the  first  time,  noted  a  change 
that  was  gradually  taking  place  on  the  surface  of  the  Reef, 
without  the  crater.  Most  of  its  cavities  were  collecting 
deposits,  that  were  derived  from  various  sources.  Sea 
weed,  offals,  refuse  stuff  of  all  kinds,  the  remains  of  the 
deluge  of  fish  that  occurred  the  past  year,  and  all  the  in 
describable  atoms  that  ever  contribute  to  form  soil  in  the 
20 


230  THE   CRATER; 

neighbourhood  of  man.  There  were  many  spots  on  the 
Reef,  of  acres  in  extent,  that  formed  shallow  basins,  in 
which  the  surface  might  be  two  or  three  inches  lower  than 
the  surrounding  rocks,  and,  in  these  spots  in  particular, 
the  accumulations  of  an  incipient  earthy  matter  were 
plainly  visible.  As  these  cavities  collected  and  retained 
the  moisture,  usually  from  rain  to  rain,  Mark  had  some  of 
Friend  Abraham  White's  grass-seed  sown  over  them,  in 
order  to  aid  nature  in  working  out  her  own  benevolent  de 
signs.  In  less  than  a  month,  patches  of  green  began  to 
appear  on  the  dusky  rocks,  and  there  was  good  reason  to 
hope  that  a  few  years  would  convert  the  whole  Reef  into 
a  smiling,  verdant  plain.  It  was  true,  the  soil  could  not 
soon  obtain  any  useful  depth,  except  in  limited  spots ;  but, 
in  that  climate,  where  warmth  and  moisture  united  to  push 
vegetation  to  the  utmost,  it  was  an  easy  thing  tp  obtain  a 
bottom  for  grasses  of  almost  all  kinds. 

Nor  did  Mark's  provident  care  limit  itself  to  this  one  in 
stance  of  forethought.  Socrates  was  sent  in  the  dingui  to 
the  prairie,  over  which  the  hogs  had  now  been  rooting  for 
fully  two  months,  mixing  together  mud  and  sea-weed, 
somewhat  loosely  it  is  true,  but  very  extensively ;  and  there 
he  scattered  Timothy-seed  in  tolerable  profusion.  Socrates 
was  a  long-headed,  as  well  as  a  long-footed  fellow,  and  he 
brought  back  from  this  expedition  a  report  that  was  of 
material  importance  to  the  future  husbandry  of  the  colo 
nists.  According  to  his  statement,  this  large  deposit  of 
mud  and  sea-weed  lay  on  a  peninsula,  that  might  be  barri 
caded  against  the  inroads  of  hogs,  cattle,  &,c.,  by  a  fence 
of  some  two  or  three  rods  in  length.  This  was  a  very  fa 
vourable  circumstance,  where  wood  was  to  be  imported 
for  many  years  to  come,  if  not  for  ever;  though  the  black 
had  brought  the  seeds  of  certain  timbers,  from  the  Peak, 
and  put  them  into  the  ground  in  a  hundred  places  on  the 
Reef,  where  the  depth  of  deposit,  and  other  circumstances, 
seemed  favourable  to  their  growth.  As  for  the  Prairie 
could  it  be  made  to  grow  grasses,  it  would  be  a  treasure 
to  the  colony,  inasmuch  as  its  extent  reached  fully  to  a 
thousand  acres.  The  examination  of  Socrates  was  flatter 
ing  in  other  respects.  The  mud  was  already  dry,  and  the 
deposit  of  salt  did  not. seem  to  be  very  great,  little  water 
having  besa  left  there  after  the  eruption,  or  lifting  of  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  231 

earth's  crust.  The  rains  had  done  much,  and  certain 
coarse,  natural  grasses,  were  beginning  to  show  themselves 
in  various  parts  of  the  field.  As  the  hogs  would  not  be 
likely  to  root  over  the  same  spot  twice,  it  was  not  proposed 
to  exclude  them,  but  they  were  permitted  to  range  over 
the  field  at  pleasure,  in  the  hope  that  they  would  add  to  its 
fertility  by  mixing  the  materials  for  soil.  In  such  a  cli 
mate,  every  change  of  a  vegetable  character  was  extremely 
rapid,  and  now  that  no  one  thought  of  abandoning  the  set 
tlement,  it  was  very  desirable  to  obtain  the  different  bene 
fits  of  civilization  as  soon  as  possible. 

All  the  blacks  remained  at  the  Reef,  where  Mark  him 
self  passed  a  good  deal  of  his  time.  In  their  next  visit  to 
the  Peak,  they  found  things  flourishing,  and  the  garden 
looking  particularly  well.  The  Vulcanists  had  their  melons 
in  any  quantity,  as  well  as  most  vegetables  without  limits. 
It  was  determined  to  divide  the  cows,  leaving  one  on  the 
Peak,  and  sending  the  other  to  the  crater,  where  there  was 
now  sufficient  grass  to  keep  two  or  three  such  animals. 
With  a  view  to  this  arrangement,  Bob  had  been  directed 
to  fence  in  the  garden  and  stack,  by  means  of  ropes  and 
stanchions  let  into  the  ground.  When  the  Anne  returned 
to  the  Reef,  therefore,  from  her  first  voyage  to  the  Peak, 
a  cow  was  sent  over  in  her.  This  change  was  made  solely 
for  the  convenience  of  the  milk,  all  the  rest  of  the  large 
stock  being  retained  on  the  plain,  where  there  was  suffi 
cient  grass  to  sustain  thousands  of  hoofs. 

But  the  return  cargo  of  the  Anne,  on  this  her  first  voy 
age,  was  composed  mainly  of  ship-timber.  Heaton  had 
found  a  variety  of  the  teak  in  the  forests  that  skirted  the 
plain,  and  Bigelow  had  got  out  of  the  trees  the  frame  of  a 
schooner  that  was  intended  to  measure  about  eighty  tons. 
A  craft  of  that  size  would  be  of  the  greatest  service  to 
them,  as  it  would  enable  the  colonists  to  visit  any  part  of 
the  Pacific  they  pleased,  and  obtain  such  supplies  as  they 
might  find  necessary.  Nor  was  this  all ;  by  mounting  on 
her  two  of  the  carronades,  she  would  effectually  give  them 
the  command  of  their  own  seas,  so  far  as  the  natives  were 
concerned  at  least.  Mark  had  some  books  on  the  draught 
ing  of  vessels,  and  Bigelow  had  once  before  laid  down  a 
brig  of  more  than  a  hundred  tons  in  dimensions.  Then 
the  stores,  rigging,  copper,  &c.,  of  the  ship,  could  nevet 


232  THE  CRATER; 

be  turned  to  better  account  than  in  the  construction  of 
another  vessel,  and  it  was  believed  she  could  furnish  mate 
rials  enough  for  two  or  three  such  craft.  Out  of  compli 
ment  to  his  old  owner,  Mark  named  this  schooner  in  em 
bryo,  the  '  Friend  Abraham  White,'  though  she  was  com 
monly  known  afterwards  as  the  'Abraham.' 

The  cutting  of  the  frame  of  the  intended  schooner  was 
a  thing  easy  enough,  with  expert  American  axemen,  and 
with  that  glorious  implement  of  civilization,  the  American 
axe.  But  it  was  not  quite  so  easy  to  get  the  timber  down 
to  the  cove.  The  keel,  in  particular,  gave  a  good  deal  of 
trouble.  Heaton  had  brought  along  with  him  both  cart 
and  wagon  wheels,  and  without  that  it  is  questionable  if 
the  stick  could  have  been  moved  by  any  force  then  at  the 
command  of  the  colony.  By  suspending  it  in  chains  be 
neath  the  axles,  however,  it  was  found  possible  to  draw  it, 
though  several  of  the  women  had  to  lend  their  aid  in  mov 
ing  the  mass.  When  at  the  head  of  the  Stairs,  the  timber 
was  lowered  on  the  rock,  and  was  slid  downwards,  with 
occasional  lifts  by  the  crowbar  and  handspike.  When  it 
reached  the  water  it  was  found  to  be  much  too  heavy  to 
float,  and  it  was  by  no  means  an  easy  matter  to  buoy  it 
up  in  such  a  way  that  it  might  be  towed.  The  Anne  was 
three  times  as  long  making  her  passage  with  this  keel  in 
tow,  as  she  was  without  it.  It  was  done,  however,  and 
the  laying  of  the  keel  was  effected  with  some  little  cere 
mony,  in  the  presence  of  nearly  every  soul  belonging  to 
the  colony. 

The  getting  out  and  raising  of  the  frame  of  the  '  Friend 
Abraham  White'  took  six  weeks.  Great  importance  was 
attached  to  success  in  this  matter,  and  everybody  assisted 
in  the  work  with  right  good  will.  At  one  time  it  was 
doubted  if  stuff  enough  could  be  found  in  the  ship  to  plank 
her  up  with,  and  it  was  thought  it  might  become  necessary 
to  break  up  the  Rancocus,  in  order  to  complete  the  job. 
To  Bridget's  great  joy,  however,  the  good  old  Rancocus — 
so  they  called  her,  though  she  was  even  then  only  eight 
years  old — the  good  old  Rancocus'  time  had  not  yet  come, 
and  she  was  able  to  live  in  her  cabin  for  some  months 
longer.  Enough  planks  were  found  by  using  those  of  the 
'twixt  decks,  a  part  of  which  were  not  bolted  down  at  all 
to  accomplish  all  that  was  wanted. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  233 

Heaton  was  a  man  of  singular  tastes,  which  led  him  to 
as  remarkable  acquirements.  Among  other  accomplish 
ments,  he  was  a  very  good  general  mechanician,  having  an 
idea  of  the  manner  in  which  most  of  the  ordinary  ma 
chinery  ought  to  be,  not  only  used,  but  fabricated.  At 
the  point  where  the  rivulet  descended  the  cliff  into  the 
sea,  he  discovered  as  noble  a  mill-seat  as  the  heart  of  man 
could  desire  to  possess.  To  have  such  a  mill-seat  at  com 
mand,  and  not  to  use  it,  would,  of  itself,  have  made  him 
unhappy,  and  he  could  not  be  easy  until  he  and  Peters, 
who  had  also  a  great  taste  and  some  skill  in  that  sort  of 
thing,  were  hard  at  work  building  a  saw-mill.  The  saw 
had  been  brought  from  America,  as  a  thing  very  likely  to 
be  wanted,  and  three  months  after  these  two  ingenious 
men  had  commenced  their  work,  the  saw  was  going,  cut 
ting  teak,  as  well  as  a  species  of  excellent  yellow  pine  that 
was  found  in  considerable  quantities,  and  of  very  respect 
able  size,  along  the  cliffs  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
mill.  The  great  difficulty  to  be  overcome  in  that  under 
taking,  was  the  transportation  of  the  timber.  By  cutting 
the  trees  most  favourably  situated  first,  logs  were  got  into 
the  pond  without  much  labour;  but  after  they  were  in 
planks,  or  boards,  or  joists,  they  were  quite  seven  miles 
from  the  head  of  the  Stairs,  in  the  vicinity  of  which  it 
was,  on  several  accounts,  the  most  desirable  to  dwell. 
Had  the  Abraham  been  kept  on  the  stocks,  until  the  ne 
cessary  timber  was  brought  from  the  mill,  across  the  plain 
of  Eden,  she  would  have  been  well  seasoned  before  launch 
ing;  but,  fortunately,  that  was  not  necessary — materials 
sufficient  for  her  were  got  on  board  the  ship,  as  mentioned, 
with  some  small  additions  of  inch  boards  that  were  cut  to 
finish  her  joiners'  work. 

Months  passed,  as  a  matter  of  course,  while  the  schooner 
and  the  mill  were  in  the  course  of  construction.  The 
work  on  the  first  was  frequently  intermitted,  by  little  voy 
ages  in  the  other  craft,  and  by  labour  necessary  to  be  done 
in  preparing  dwellings  on  the  Peak,  to  meet  the  rainy  sea 
son,  which  was  now  again  near  at  hand.  Past  experience 
had  told  Mark  that  the  winter  months  in  his  islands,  if 
winter  a  season  could  be  termed,  during  which  most  of  the 
trees,  all  the  grasses,  and  many  of  the  fruits  continued  to 
20* 


234  THE   CRATER: 

grow  and  ripen  as  in  summer,  were  not  very  formidable. 
It  is  true  it  then  rained  nearly  every  day,  but  it  was  very 
far  from  raining  all  day.  Most  of  the  rain,  in  fact,  fell  at 
night,  commencing  a  little  after  the  turn  in  the  day,  and 
terminating  about  midnight.  Still  it  must  be  very  unplea 
sant  to  pass  such  a  season  beneath  canvass,  and,  about  six 
weeks  ere  the  wet  time  commenced,  everybody  turned  to, 
with  a  will,  to  erect  proper  framed  houses.  Now  that  the 
mill  was  sawing,  this  was  no  great  task,  the  pine  working 
beautifully  and  easily  into  almost  every  article  required. 

Heaton  laid  out  his  house  with  some  attention  to  taste, 
and  more  to  comfort.  It  was  of  one  story,  but  fully  a 
hundred  feet  in  length,  and  of  half  that  in  depth.  Being 
a  common  American  dwelling  that  was  clap-boarded,  it 
was  soon  put  up  and  enclosed,  the  climate  requiring  very 
little  attention  to  warmth.  There  were  windows,  and 
even  glass,  a  small  quantity  of  that  article  having  been 
brought  along  by  the  colonists.  The  floors  were  beautiful, 
and  extremely  well  laid  down ;  npr  were  the  doors,  win 
dow-shutters,  &c.,  neglected.  The  whole,  moreover,  was 
painted,  the  stores  of  the  ship  still  furnishing  the  neces 
sary  materials.  But  there  was  neither  chimney  nor  plas 
tering,  for  Heaton  had  neither  bricks  nor  lime.  Bricks 
he  insisted  he  could  and  would  make,  and  did,  though  in 
no  great  number ;  but  lime,  for  some  time,  baffled  his  inge 
nuity.  At  last,  Socrates  suggested  the  burning  of  oyster- 
shells,  and  by  dint  of  fishing  a  good  deal,  among  the  chan 
nels  of  the  reef,  a  noble  oyster-bed  was  found,  and  the 
boats  brought  in  enough  of  the  shells  to  furnish  as  much 
lime  as  would  put  up  a  chimney  for  the  kitchen;  one 
apartment  for  that  sort  of  work  being  made,  as  yet,  to 
suffice  for  the  wants  of  all  who  dwelt  in  Eden. 

These  various  occupations  and  interests  consumed 
many  months,  and  carried  the  new-comers  through  the 
first  wet  season  which  they  encountered  as  a  colony.  As 
everybody  was  busy,  plenty  reigned,  and  the  climate  being 
so  very  delicious  as  to  produce  a  sense  of  enjoyment  in 
the  very  fact  of  existence,  everybody  but  Peters  was  happy. 
He,  poor  fellow,  mourned  much  for  his  Peggy,  as  he  called 
the  pretty  young  heathen  wife  he  had  left  behind  him  in 
Waally's  country. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  235 


CHAPTEE  XYI 

"Forthwith  a  guard  at  every  gun 

Was  placed  along  the  wall ; 
The  beacon  blazed  upon  the  roof 

Of  Edgecombe's  lofty  hall ; 
And  many  a  fishing  bark  put  out, 

To  pry  along  the  coast ; 
And  with  loose  rein,  and  bloody  spur 
Rode  inland  many  a  post." 

The  Spanish  Jlrmada.     ]WCAULXT. 

THE  building  of  the  houses,  and  of  the  schooner,  was 
occupation  for  everybody,  for  a  long  time.  The  first  were 
completed  in  season  to  escape  the  rains ;  but  the  last  was 
on  the  stocks  fully  six  months  after  her  keel  had  been  laid. 
The  fine  weather  had  returned,  even,  and  she  was  not  yet 
launched.  So  long  a  period  had  intervened  since  Waally's 
visit  to  Rancocus  Island  without  bringing  any  results,  that 
the  council  began  to  hope  the  Indians  had  given  up  their 
enterprises,  from  the  consciousness  of  not  having  the 
means  to  carry  them  out;  and  almost  every  one  ceased  to 
apprehend  danger  from  that  quarter.  In  a  word,  so 
smoothly  did  the  current  of  life  flow,  on  the  Reef  and  at 
Vulcan's  Peak,  that  there  was  probably  more  danger  of 
their  inhabitants  falling  into  the  common  and  fatal  error 
of  men  in  prosperity,  than  of  anything  else ;  or,  of  their 
oeginning  to  fancy  that  they  deserved  all  the  blessings  that 
were  conferred  on  them,  and  forgetting  the  hand  that  be 
stowed  them.  As  if  to  recall  them  to  a  better  sense  of 
things,  events  now  occurred  which  it  is  our  business  to 


236  THE  CRATER; 

relate,  and  which  aroused  the  whole  colony  from  the  sort 
of  pleasing  trance  into  which  they  had  fallen,  by  the  united 
influence  of  security,  abundance,  and  a  most  seductive 
climate. 

As  time  rolled  on,  in  the  first  place,  the  number  of  the 
colony  had  begun  to  augment  by  natural  means.  Friend 
Martha  had  presented  Friend  Robert  with  a  little  Robert ; 
and  Bridget  made  Mark  the  happy  parent  of  a  very  charm 
ing  girl.  This  last  event  occurred  about  the  commence 
ment  of  the  summer,  and  just  a  twelvemonth  after  the 
happy  reunion  of  the  young  couple.  According  to  Mark's 
prophecy,  Jones  had  succeeded  with  Joan,  and  they  were 
married  even  before  the  expiration  of  the  six  months  men 
tioned.  On  the  subject  of  a  marriage  ceremony  there  was 
no  difficulty,  Robert  and  Martha  holding  a  Friends'  meet 
ing  especially  to  quiet  the  scruples  of  the  bride,  though 
she  was  assured  the  form  could  do  no  good,  since  the 
bridegroom  did  not  belong  to  meeting.  The  governor  read 
the  church  service  on  the  occasion,  too,  which  did  no 
harm,  if  it  did  no  good.  About  this  time,  poor  Peters, 
envying  the  happiness  of  all  around  him,  and  still  pining 
for  his  Petrina,  or  Peggy,  as  he  called  her  himself,  begged 
of  the  governor  the  use  of  the  Dido,  in  order  that  he  might 
make  a  voyage  to  Waally's  group  in  quest  of  his  lost  com 
panion.  Mark  knew  how  to  feel  for  one  in  the  poor  fel 
low's  situation,  and  he  could  not  think  of  letting  him  go 
alone  on  an  expedition  of  so  much  peril.  After  deliberat 
ing  on  the  matter,  he  determined  to  visit  Rancocus  Island 
himself — not  having  been  in  that  direction,  now,  for 
months — and  to  go  in  the  Neshamony,  in  order  to  take  a 
couple  of  hogs  over ;  it  having  long  been  decided  to  com 
mence  breeding  that  valuable  animal,  in  the  wild  state,  on 
the  hills  of  that  uninhabited  land. 

The  intelligence  that  a  voyage  was  to  be  made  to  Ran 
cocus  Island  seemed  to  infuse  new  life  into  the  men  of  the 
colony,  every  one  of  whom  wished  to  be  of  the  party.  The 
governor  had  no  objection  to  indulging  as  many  as  it  might 
be  prudent  to  permit  to  go ;  but  he  saw  the  necessity  of 
putting  some  restraint  on  the  movement.  After  canvassing 
the  matter  in  the  council,  it  was  determined  that,  in  addi 
tion  to  Mark  and  Peters,  who  went  of  course,  the  party 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  237 

*  should  consist  of  Bob,  Bigelow,  and  Socrates.  The  car 
penter  was  taken  to  look  for  trees  that  might  serve  to  make 
the  ways  of  the  schooner,  which  was  yet  to  be  launched; 
and  the  latter  was  thought  necessary  in  his  capacity  of  a 
cook.  As  for  Betts,  he  went  along  as  the  governor's  coun 
sellor  and  companion. 

Bridget's  little  girl  was  born  in  the  cabin  of  the  ship ; 
and  the  week  preceding  that  set  for  the  voyage,  she  and 
the  child  were  taken  across  to  the  Peak,  that  the  former  * 
might  spend  the  period  of  ner  nusoand's  aosence  witn 
Anne,  in  the  Garden  of  Eden.  These  absences  and  occa 
sional  visits  gave  a  zest  to  lives  that  might  otherwise  have 
become  too  monotonous,  and  were  rather  encouraged  than 
avoided.  It  was,  perhaps,  a  little  strange  that  Bridget 
rather  preferred  the  Reef  than  the  Peak  for  a  permanent 
residence  ;  but  there  was  her  much-beloved  ship,  and  there 
she  ever  had  her  still  more  beloved  husband  for  a  com 
panion. 

On  the  appointed  day,  the  Neshamony  set  sail,  having 
on  board  a  family  of  three  of  the  swine.  The  plan  for  the 
excursion  included  a  trip  to  the  volcano,  which  had  not 
yet  been  actually  visited  by  any  of  the  colonists.  Mark 
had  been  within  a  league  of  it,  and  Bob  had  passed  quite 
near  to  it  in  his  voyage  to  the  Peak ;  but  no  one  had  ever 
positively  landed,  or  made  any  of  those  close  examinations 
of  the  place,  which,  besides  being  of  interest  in  a  general 
way,  was  doubly  so  to  those  who  were  such  near  neigh- 
bours  to  a  place  of  the  kind.  This  visit  Mark  now  de 
cided  to  make  on  his  way  to  leeward,  taking  the  volcano 
in  his  course  to  Rancocus  Island.  The  dttour  would  lead 
the  Neshamony  some  fifteen  or  eighteen  leagues  on  one 
side ;  but  there  was  abundance  of  time,  and  the  volcano 
ought  to  be  no  longer  neglected. 

The  wind  did  not  blow  as  fresh  as  in  common,  and  the 
Neshamony  did  not  draw  near  to  the  volcano  until  late  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  day  she  sailed.  The  party  approached 
this  place  with  due  caution,  and  not  without  a  good  deal 
of  awe.  As  the  lead  was  used,  it  was  found  that  the  water 
shoaled  gradually  for  several  leagues,  becoming  less  and 
iess  deep  as  the  boat  drew  near  to  the  cone,  which  was 
itself  a  circular  and  very  regular  mountain,  of  some  six  or 


238  THE   CRATER; 

eight  hundred  feet  in  height,  with  a  foundation  of  dry  rock 
and  lava,  that  might  have  contained  a  thousand  acres. 
Everything  seemed  solid  and  permanent;  and  our  mariners 
were  of  opinion  there  was  very  little  danger  of  this  forma 
tion  ever  disappearing  below  the  surface  of  the  sea  again. 

The  volcano  being  in  activity,  some  care  was  necessary 
in  landing.  Mark  took  the  Neshamony  to  windward,  and 
found  a  curvature  in  the  rocks  where  it  was  possible  to  get 
ashore  without  having  the  boat  knocked  to  pieces.  He 
and  Bob  then  went  as  near  the  cone  as  the  falling  stones 
would  allow,  and  took  as  good  a  survey  of  the  place  as 
could  be  done  under  the  circumstances.  That  there  would 
be  soil,  and  plenty  of  it,  sooner  or  later,  was  plain  enough ; 
and  that  the  island  might  become  a  scene  of  fertility  and 
loveliness,  in  the  course  of  ages,  like  so  many  others  of 
volcanic  origin  in  that  quarter  of  the  world,  was  probable. 
But  that  day  was  distant;  and  Mark  was  soon  satisfied 
that  the  great  use  of  the  spot  was  its  being  a  vent  to  what 
would  otherwise  be  the  pent  and  dangerous  forces  that 
were  in  the  course  of  a  constant  accumulation  beneath. 

The  party  had  been  about  an  hour  on  the  island,  and 
was  about  to  quit  it,  when  a  most  startling  discovery  was 
made.  Bob  saw  a  canoe  drawn  close  in  among  the  rocks 
to  leeward,  and,  on  a  further  examination,  a  man  was  seen 
near  it.  At  first,  this  was  taken  as  an  indication  of  hosti 
lities,  but,  on  getting  a  second  look,  our  mariners  were 
satisfied  that  nothing  of  that  sort  was  to  be  seriously  ap 
prehended.  It  was  determined  to  go  nearer  to  the  stranger, 
at  once,  and  learn  the  whole  truth. 

A  cry  from  Peters,  followed  by  his  immediately  spring 
ing  forward  to  meet  a  second  person,  who  had  left  the 
canoe,  and  who  was  bounding  like  a  young  antelope  to 
meet  him,  rendered  everything  clear  sooner  even  than  had 
been  anticipated.  All  supposed  that  this  eager  visiter  was 
a  woman,  and  no  one  doubted  that  it  was  Peggy,  the  poor 
fellow's  Indian  wife.  Peggy  it  proved  to  be ;  and  after  the 
weeping,  and  laughing,  and  caressing  of  the  meeting  were 
a  little  abated,  the  following  explanation  was  made  by 
Peters,  who  spoke  the  language  of  his  wife  with  a  good 
ieal  of  facility,  and  who  acted  as  interpreter. 

According  to  the  accounts  now  given  by  Peggy,  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  239 

warfare  between  Ooroony  and  Waally  had  been  kept  up 
with  renewed  vigour,  subsequently  to  the  escape  of  Jones 
and  her  own  husband.  Fortune  had  proved  fickle,  as  so 
often  happens,  and  Waally  got  to  be  in  the  ascendant.  His 
enemy  was  reduced  to  great  straits,  and  had  been  com 
pelled  to  confine  himself  to  one  of  the  smallest  islands  of 
the  group,  where  he  was  barely  able  to  maintain  his  party, 
by  means  of  the  most  vigilant  watchfulness.  This  left 
Waally  at  liberty  to  pursue  his  intention  of  following  the 
party  of  whites,  which  was  known  to  have  gone  to  the  south 
ward,  with  so  much  valuable  property,  as  well  as  to  extend 
his  conquests,  by  taking  possession  of  the  mountain  visited 
by  him  the  year  previously.  A  grand  expedition  was  ac 
cordingly  planned,  and  a  hundred  canoes  had  actually 
sailed  from  the  group,  with  more  than  a  thousand  warriors 
on  board,  bent  on  achieving  a  great  exploit.  In  this  expe 
dition,  Unus,  the  brother  of  Peggy,  had  been  compelled  to 
join,  being  a  warrior  of  some  note,  and  the  sister  had  come 
along,  in  common  with  some  fifty  other  women ;  the  rank 
of  Urius  and  Peggy  not  being  sufficient  to  attract  attention 
to  their  proceedings.  Waally  had  postponed  this,  which  he 
intended  for  the  great  enterprise  of  a  very  turbulent  life,  to 
the  most  favourable  season  of  the  year.  There  was  a 
period  of  a  few  weeks  every  summer,  when  the  trades 
blew  much  less  violently  than  was  usually  the  case,  and 
when,  indeed,  it  was  no  unusual  thing  to  have  shifts  of 
wind,  as  well  as  light  breezes.  All  this  the  Indians  per 
fectly  well  understood,  for  they  were  bold  navigators,  when 
the  sizes  and  qualities  of  their  vessels  were  considered. 
As  it  appeared,  the  voyage  from  the  group  to  Rancocus 
Island,  a  distance  of  fully  a  hundred  leagues,  was  effected 
without  any  accident,  and  the  whole  of  that  formidable 
force  was  safely  landed  at  the  very  spot  where  Betts  had 
encamped  on  his  arrival  out  with  the  colonists.  Nearly  a 
month  had  been  passed  in  exploring  the  mountain,  the  first 
considerable  eminence  most  of  the  Indians  had  ever  beheld; 
and  in  making  their  preparations  for  further  proceedings. 
During  that  time,  hundreds  had  seen  Vulcan's  Peak,  as 
well  as  the  smoke  of  the  volcano,  though  the  reef,  with  all 
its  islands,  lay  too  low  to  be  discerned  from  such  a  dis 
tance.  The  Peak  was  now  the  great  object  to  be  attained, 


240  THE  CRATER; 

for  there  it  was  universally  believed  that  Betto  (meaning 
Betts)  and  his  companions  had  concealed  themselves  and 
their  much-coveted  treasures.  Rancocus  Island  was  well 
enough,  and  Waally  made  all  his  plans  for  colonizing  it  at 
once,  but  the  other,  and  distant  mountain,  no  doubt  was 
the  most  desirable  territory  to  possess,  or  white  men  would 
not  have  brought  their  women  so  far  in  order  to  occupy  it. 

As  a  matter  of  course,  Unus  and  Peggy  learned  the 
nature  of  the  intended  proceedings.  The  last  might  have 
been  content  to  wait  for  the  slower  movements  of  the  ex 
pedition,  had  she  not  ascertained  that  threats  of  severely 
punishing  the  two  deserters,  one  of  whom  was  her  own 
husband,  had  been  heard  to  fall  from  the  lips  of  the  dread 
Waally  himself.  No  sooner,  therefore,  did  this  faithful  In 
dian  girl  become  mistress  of  the  intended  plan,  than  she 
gave  her  brother  no  peace  until  he  consented  to  put  off 
into  the  ocean  with  her,  in  a  canoe  she  had  brought  from 
home,  and  which  was  her  own  property.  Had  not  Unus 
been  disaffected  to  his  new  chief,  this  might  not  so  easily 
have  been  done,  but  the  young  Indian  was  deadly  hostile 
to  Waally,  and  was  a  secret  friend  of  Ooroony ;  a  state 
of  feeling  which  disposed  him  to  desert  the  former,  at  the 
first  good  opportunity. 

The  two  adventurers  put  off  from  Rancocus  Island  just 
at  dark,  and  paddled  in  the  direction  that  they  believed 
would  carry  them  to  the  Peak.  It  will  be  remembered 
that  the  last  could  not  be  seen  from  the  ocean,  until  about 
half  the  passage  between  the  islands  was  made,  though  it 
was  plainly  apparent  from  the  heights  of  Rancocus,  as  al 
ready  mentioned.  Next  morning,  when  day  returned,  the 
smoke  of  the  volcano  was  in  sight,  but  no  Peak.  There 
is  little  question  that  the  canoe  had  been  set  too  much  to 
the  southward,  and  was  diagonally  receding  from  its  de 
sired  point  of  debarkation,  instead  of  approaching  it.  To 
wards  the  smoke,  Unus  and  his  sister  continued  to  paddle, 
arid,  after  thirty-six  hours  of  nearly  unremitted  labour,  they 
succeeded  in  landing  at  the  volcano,  ignorant  of  its  na 
ture,  awe-struck  and  trembling,  but  compelled  to  seek  a 
refuge  there,  as  the  land-bird  rests  its  tired  wing  on  the 
ship's  spars,  when  driven  from  the  coast  by  the  unexpected 
gale.  When  discovered,  Peggy  and  her  brother  were 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  241 

about  to  take  a  fresh  start  from  their  resting-place,  the 
Peak  being  visible  from  the  volcano. 

Mark  questioned  these  two  friends  concerning  the  con 
templated  movement  of  Waally,  with  great  minuteness, 
CJnsus  was  intelligent  for  a  savage,  and  appeared  to  under 
stand  himself  perfectly.  He  was  of  opinion  that  his  coun 
trymen  would  endeavour  to  cross,  the  first  calm  day,  or  the 
first  day  when  the  breeze  should  be  light;  and  that  was  just 
the  time  when  our  colonists  did  not  desire  to  meet  the 
savages  out  at  sea.  He  described  the  party  as  formidable 
by  numbers  and  resolution,  though  possessing  few  arms 
besides  those  of  savages.  There  were  half  a  dozen  old 
muskets  in  the  canoes,  with  a  small  supply  of  ammunition; 
but,  since  the  desertion  of  Jones  and  Peters,  no  one  re 
mained  who  knew  how  to  turn  these  weapons  to  much 
account.  Nevertheless,  the  natives  were  so  numerous, 
possessed  so  many  weapons  that  were  formidable  in  their 
own  modes  of  fighting,  and  were  so  bent  on  success,  that 
Unus  did  not  hesitate  to  give  it  as  his  opinion,  the  colo 
nists  would  act  wisely  in  standing  off  for  some  other  isl 
and,  if  they  knew  where  another  lay,  even  at  the  cost  of 
abandoning  most  of  their  effects. 

But,  our  governor  had  no  idea  of  following  any  such 
advice.  He  was  fully  aware  of  the  strength  of  his  position 
on  the  Peak,  and  felt  no  disposition  to  abandon  it.  His 
great  apprehension  was  for  the  Reef,  where  his  territories 
were  much  more  assailable.  It  was  not  easy  to  see  how 
the  crater,  and  ship,  and  the  schooner  on  the  stocks,  and 
all  the  other  property  that,  in  the  shape  of  hogs,  poultry, 
&c.,  was  scattered  far  and  wide  in  that  group,  could  be 
protected  against  a  hundred  canoes,  by  any  force  at  his 
command.  Even  with  the  addition  of  Unus,  who  took 
service  at  once,  with  all  his  heart,  among  his  new  friends, 
Mark  could  muster  but  eight  men ;  viz.,  himself,  Heaton, 
Betts,  Bigelow,  Socrates,  Peters,  Jones  and  Unus.  To 
these  might  possibly  be  added  two  or  three  of  the  women, 
who  might  be  serviceable  in  carrying  ammunition,  and  as 
sentinels,  while  the  remainder  would  be  required  to  look 
after  the  children,  to  care  for  the  stock,  &,c.  All  these 
facts  passed  through  Mark's  mind,  as  Peters  translated  the 
communication  ef  Unus,  sentence  by  sentence. 
21 


242  THE   CRATER; 

It  was  indispensable  to  come  to  some  speedy  decision. 
Peters  was  now  happy  and  contented  with  his  nice  little 
Peggy,  and  there  was  no  longer  any  necessity  for  pursuing 
the  voyage  on  his  account.  As  for  the  project  of  placing 
the  hogs  on  Rancocus,  this  was  certainly  not  the  time  to  do 
it,  even  if  it  were  now  to  be  done  at  all ;  we  say  '  now,' 
since  the  visits  of  the  savages  would  make  any  species  of 
property  on  that  island,  from  this  time  henceforth,  very  in 
secure.  It  was  therefore  determined  to  abandon  the  voyage, 
and  to  shape  their  course  back  to  the  Peak,  with  as  little 
delay  as  possible.  As  there  were  indications  of  shell-fish, 
sea-weed,  &,c.,  being  thrown  ashore  at  the  Volcano,  two 
of  the  hogs  were  put  ashore  there  to  seek  their  fortunes. 
According  to  the  new  plan,  the  Neshamony  made  sail  on 
her  return  passage,  about  an  hour  before  the  sun  set.  As 
was  usual  in  that  strait,  the  trades  blew  pretty  fresh,  and 
the  boat,  although  it  had  the  canoe  of  Unus  in  tow,  came 
under  the  frowning  cliffs  some  time  before  the  day  reap 
peared.  By  the  time  the  sun  rose,  the  Neshamony  was  off 
the  cove,  into  which  she  hastened  with  the  least  possible 
delay.  It  was  the  governor's  apprehension  that  his  sails 
might  be  seen  from  the  canoes  of  Waally,  long  before  the 
canoes  could  be  seen  from  his  boat,  and  he  was  glad  to  get 
within  the  cover  of  his  little  haven.  Once  there,  the  dif 
ferent  crafts  were  quite  concealed  from  the  view  of  per 
sons  outside,  and  it  now  remained  to  be  proved  whether 
their  cover  was  not  so  complete  as  effectually  to  baffle  a 
hostile  attempt  to  find  it. 

The  quick  and  unexpected  return  of  the  Neshamony 
produced  a  great  deal  of  surprise  on  the  Plain.  She  had 
not  been  seen  to  enter  the  cove,  and  the  first  intimation 
any  one  in  the  settlement  had  of  such  an  occurrence,  was 
the  appearance  of  Mark  before  the  door  of  the  dwelling. 
Bigelow  was  immediately  sent  to  the  Peak  with  a  glass,  to 
look  out  for  canoes,  while  Heaton  was  called  in  from  the 
•vroods  by  means  of  a  conch.  In  twenty  minutes  the  council 
was  regularly  in  session,  while  the  men  began  to  collect 
and  to  look  to  their  arms.  Peters  and  Jones  were  ordered 
to  go  down  to  the  magazine,  procure  cartridges,  and  then 
proceed  to  the  batteries  and  load  the  carronades.  In  a 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  243 

word,  orders  were  given  to  make  all  the  arrangements  ne 
cessary  for  the  occasion. 

It  was  not  long  ere  a  report  came  down  from  Bigelow. 
It  was  brought  by  his  Spanish  wife,  who  had  accompanied 
her  husband  to  the  Peak,  and  who  came  running  in,  half 
breathless,  to  say  that  the  ocean  was  covered  with  canoes 
and  catamarans ;  a  fleet  of  which  was  paddling  directly  for 
the  island,  being  already  within  three  leagues  of  it. 
Although  this  intelligence  was  expected,  it  certainly  caused 
long  faces  and  a  deep  gloom  to  pervade  that  little  com 
munity.  Mark's  fears  were  always  for  the  Reef,  where 
there  happened  to  be  no  one  just  at  that  moment  but  the 
black  women,  who  were  altogether  insufficient  to  defend 
it,  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances,  but  who  were 
now  without  a  head.  There  was  the  hope,  however,  of  the 
Indians  not  seeing  those  low  islands,  which  they  certainly 
could  not  do  as  long  as  they  remained  in  their  canoes.  On 
the  other  hand,  there  was  the  danger  that  some  one  might 
cross  from  the  Reef  in  one  of  the  boats,  a  thing  that  was 
done  as  often  as  once  a  week,  in  which  case  a  chase  might 
ensue,  and  the  canoes  be  led  directly  towards  the  spot  that 
it  was  so  desirable  to  conceal.  Juno  could  sail  a  boat  as 
well  as  any  man  among  them,  and,  as  is  usually  the  case, 
that  which  she  knew  she  could  do  so  well,  she  was  fond  of 
doing  ;  and  she  had  not  now  been  across  for  nearly  a  week. 
The  cow  kept  at  the  crater  gave  a  large  mess  of  milk,  and 
the  butter  produced  by  her  means  was  delicious  when  eaten 
fresh,  but  did  not  keep  quite  as  well  in  so  warm  a  climate 
as  it  might  have  done  in  one  that  was  colder,  and  Dido  wai 
ever  anxious  to  send  it  to  Miss  Bridget,  as  she  still  called 
her  mistress,  by  every  available  opportunity.  The  boat  used 
by  the  negresses  on  such  occasions,  was  the  Dido,  a  perfect 
ly  safe  craft  in  moderate  weather,  but  she  was  just  the  dull 
est  sailer  of  all  those  owned  by  the  colony.  This  created 
the  additional  danger  of  a  capture,  in  the  event  of  a  chase, 
Taking  all  things  into  consideration  therefore,  Mark  ad 
journed  the  council  to  the  Peak,  a  feverish  desire  to  look 
out  upon  the  sea,  causing  him  to  be  too  uneasy  where  he 
was,  to  remain  there  in  consultation  with  any  comfort  tc 
himself.  To  the  Peak,  then,  everybody  repaired,  with  the 
exception  of  Bigelow,  Peters,  and  Jones,  who  were  now 


244  THE  CRATER; 

regularly  stationed  at  the  carronades  to  watch  the  entrance 
of  the  cove.  In  saying  everybody,  we  include  not  only 
all  the  women,  but  even  their  children. 

So  long  as  the  colonists  remained  on  the  plain,  tnere  was 
not  the  smallest  danger  of  any  one  of,them  being  seen  from 
the  surrounding  ocean.  This  the  woods,  and  their  great 
elevation,  prevented.  Nor  was  there  much  danger  of  the 
party  in  the  batteries  being  seen,  though  so  much  lower, 
and  necessarily  on  the  side  of  the  cliff,  since  a  strict  order 
had  been  given  to  keep  out  of  sight,  among  the  trees,  where 
they  could  see  everything  that  was  going  on,  without  being 
seen  themselves.  But  on  the  naked  Peak  it  was  different. 
High  as  it  .was,  a  man  might  be  seen  from  the  ocean,  if 
moving  about,  and  the  observer  was  tolerably  near  by. 
Bob  had  seen  Mark,  when  his  attention  was  drawn  to  the 
spot  by  the  report  of  the  latter's  fowling-piece ;  and  the 
governor  had  often  seen  Bridget,  on  the  look-out  for  him, 
as  he  left  the  island,  though  her  fluttering  dress  probably 
made  her  a  more  conspicuous  object  than  most  persona 
would  have  been.  From  all  this,  then,  the  importance  of 
directing  the  movements  of  the  party  that  followed  him 
became  apparent  to  Mark,  who  took  his  measures  accord- 

ingty- 

By  the .  time  the  governor  reached  the  Peak,  having 
ascended  it  on  its  eastern  side,  so  as  to  keep  his  person 
concealed,  the  hostile  fleet  was  plainly  to  be  seen  with  the 
naked  eye.  It  came  on  in  a  tolerably  accurate  line,  or 
lines,  abreast;  being  three  deep,  one  distant  from  the  other 
about  a  cable's  length.  It  steered  directly  for  the  centre 
of  the  island,  whereas  the  cove  was  much  nearer  to  its 
northern  than  to  its  southern  end ;  and  the  course  showed 
that  the  canoes  were  coming  on  at  random,  having  nothing 
in  view  but  the  island. 

But  Mark's  eyes  were  turned  with  the  greatest  interest 
to  the  northward,  or  in  the  direction  of  the  Reef.  As  they 
came  up  the  ascent,  Bridget  had  communicated  to  him  the 
fact  that  she  expected  Juno  over  that  day,  and  that  it  was 
understood  she  would  come  quite  alone.  Bridget  was 
much  opposed  to  the  girl's  taking  this  risk ;  but  Juno  had 
now  done  it  so  often  successfully,  that  nothing  short  of  a 
positive  command  to  the  contrary  would  be  likely  to  stop 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  245 

her.  This  command,  most  unfortunately,  as  Mark  now  felt, 
had  not  been  given  ;  and  great  was  his  concern  when  Betts 
declared  that  he  saw  a  white  speck  to  the  northward,  which 
looked  like  a  sail.  The  glass  was  'Soon  levelled  in  that 
direction,  and  no  doubt  any  longer  remained  on  the  sub 
ject.  It  was  the  Dido,  steering  across  from  the  Reef,  dis 
tant  then  about  ten  miles ;  and  she  might  be  expected  to 
arrive  in  about  two  hours  !  In  other  words,  judging  by  the 
progress  of  the  canoes,  there  might  be  a  difference  of 
merely  half  an  hour  or  so  between  the  time  of  the  arrival 
of  the  boat  and  that  of  the  canoes. 

This  was  a  very  serious  matter ;  and  never  before  had  the 
council  a  question  before  it  which  gave  its  members  so  much 
concern,  or  which  so  urgently  called  for  action,  as  this  of 
the  course  that  was  now  to  be  taken  to  avert  a  danger  so 
imminent.  Not  only  was  Juno's  safety  involved ;  but  the 
discovery  of  the  cove  and  the  reef,  one  or  both,  was  very 
likely  to  be  involved  in  the  issue,  and  the  existence  of  the 
whole  colony  placed  in  extreme  jeopardy.  As  the  canoes 
were  still  more  than  a  league  from  the  island,  Bob  thought 
there  was  time  to  go  out  with  the  Bridget,  and  meet  the 
Dido,  when  both  boats  could  ply  to  windward  until  it  was 
dark ;  after  which,  they  might  go  into  the  reef,  or  come 
into  the  cove,  as  circumstances  permitted.  The  governor 
was  about  to  acquiesce  in  this  suggestion,  little  as  he  liked 
it,  when  a  new  proposition  was  made,  that  at  first  seemed 
so  strange  that  no  one  believed  it  could  be  put  in  execu 
tion,  but  to  which  all  assented  in  the  end. 

Among  the  party  on  the  Peak  were  Unus  and  Peggy. 
The  latter  understood  a  good  deal  of  English,  and  that 
which  she  did  not  comprehend,  in  the  course  of  the  dis 
cussions  on  this  interesting  occasion,  Bob,  who  had  picked 
up  something  of  the  language  of  her  group,  explained  to 
her,  as  well  as  he  could.  After  a  time,  the  girl  ran  down 
to  the  battery  and  brought  up  her  husband,  through  whom 
the  proposal  was  made  that,  at  first,  excited  so  much  won 
der.  Peggy  had  told  Unus  what  was  going  on,  and  had 
pointed  out  to  him  the  boat  of  Juno,  now  sensibly  drawing 
nearer  to  the  island,  and  Unus  volunteered  to  swim  out 
and  meet  the  girl,  so  as  to  give  her  timely  warning,  as 
well  as  instructions  how  to  proceed ! 
21* 


246  THE  CRATER; 

Although  Mark,  and  Heaton,  and  Bridget,  and  all  pre* 
'sent  indeed,  were  fully  aware  that  the  natives  of  the  South 
Seas  could,  and  often  did  pass  hours  in  the  water,  this  pro 
posal  struck  them  all,  at  first,  as  so  wild,  that  no  one  be 
lieved  it  could  be  accepted.  Reflection,  however,  did  its 
usual  office,  and  wrought  a  change  in  these  opinions.  Peters 
assured  the  governor  that  he  had  often  known  Unus  to 
swim  from  island  to  island  in  the  group,  and  that  on  the 
score  of  danger  to  him,  there  was  not  the  least  necessity 
of  feeling  any  uneasiness.  He  did  not  question  the  In 
dian's  power  to  swim  the  entire  distance  to  the  Reef, 
should  it  be  necessary. 

Another  difficulty  arose,  however,  when  the  first  was 
overcome.  Unus  could  speak  no  English,  and  how  was  he 
to  communicate  with  Juno,  even  after  he  had  entered  her 
boat  ?  The  girl,  moreover,  was  both  resolute  and  strong, 
as  her  present  expedition  sufficiently  proved,  and  would  be 
very  apt  to  knock  a  nearly  naked  savage  on  the  head,  when 
she  saw  him  attempting  to  enter  her  boat.  From  this 
last  opinion,  however,  Bridget  dissented.  Juno  was  kind- 
hearted,  and  would  be  more  disposed,  she  thought,  to  pick 
up  a  man  found  in  the  water  at  sea,  than  to  injure  him. 
But  Juno  could  read  writing.  Bridget  herself  had  taught 
her  slaves  to  read  and  write,  and  Juno  in  particular  was  a 
sort  of  'expert,'  in  her  way.  She  wrote  and  read  half  the 
nigger-letters  of  Bristol,  previously  to  quitting  America. 
She  would  now  write  a  short  note,  which  would  put  the 
girl  on  her  guard,  and  give  her  confidence  in  Unus.  Juno 
knew  the  whole  history  of  Peters  and  Peggy,  having  taken 
great  interest  in  the  fate  of  the  latter.  To  own  the  truth, 
the  girl  had  manifested  a  very  creditable  degree  of  princi 
ple  on  the  subject,  for  Jones  had  tried  to  persuade  his 
friend  to  take  Juno,  a  nice,  tidy,  light-coloured  black,  to 
wife,  and  to  forget  Peggy,  when  Juno  repelled  the  attempt 
with  spirit  and  principle.  It  is  due  to  Peters,  moreover, 
to  add  that  he  was  always  true  to  his  island  bride.  But  the 
occurrence  had  made  Juno  acquainted  with  the  whole  his 
tory  of  Peggy ;  and  Bridget,  in  the  few  lines  she  now  wrote 
to  the  girl,  took  care  to  tell  her  that  the  Indian  was  the 
brother  of  Peggy.  In  that  capacity,  he  would  be  almost 
certain  of  a  friendly  reception.  The  rest  of  the  note  was 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  247 

merely  an  outline  of  their  situation,  with  an  injunction  to 
let  Unis  direct  the  movements. 

No  sooner  was  this  important  note  written,  than  Unus 
hastened  down  to  the  cove.  He  was  accompanied  by 
Mark,  Peters  and  Peggy ;  the  former  to  give  his  instruc 
tions,  and  the  two  latter  to  act  as  interpreters.  Nor  was 
the  sister  without  feeling  for  the  brother  on  the  occasion. 
She  certainly  did  not  regard  his  enterprise  as  it  would  have 
been  looked  upon  by  a  civilized  woman,  but  she  manifested 
a  proper  degree  of  interest  in  its  success.  Her  parting 
words  to  her  brother,  were  advice  to  keep  well  to  wind 
ward,  in  order  that,  as  he  got  near  the  boat,  he  might  float 
down  upon  it  with  the  greater  facility,  aided  by  the  waves. 

The  young  Indian  was  soon  ready.  The  note  was  se 
cured  in  his  hair,  and  moving  gently  in  the  water,  he  swam 
out  of  the  cove  with  the  ease,  if  not  with  the  rapidity  of  a 
fish.  .  Peggy  clapped  her  hands  and  laughed,  and  other 
wise  manifested  a  sort  of  childish  delight,  as  if  pleased 
that  one  of  her  race  should  so  early  make  himself  useful 
to  the  countrymen  of  her  husband.  She  and  Peters  re 
paired  to  the  battery,  which  was  the  proper  station  of  the 
man,  while  Mark  went  nimbly  up  the  Stairs,  on  his  way  to 
the  Peak.  And  here  we  might  put  in  a  passing  word  on 
the  subject  of  these  ascents  and  descents.  The  governor 
had  now  been  accustomed  to  them  more  than  a  twelvemonth, 
and  he  found  that  the  effect  they  produced  on  the  muscles 
of  his  lower  limbs  was  absolutely  surprising.  He  could 
now  ascend  the  Stairs  in  half  the  time  he  had  taken  on 
his  first  trials,  and  he  could  carry  burthens  up  and  down 
them,  that  at  first  he  would  not  have  dreamed  of  attempt 
ing  even  to  take  on  his  shoulders.  The  same  was  true 
with  all  the  colonists,  male  and  female,  who  began  to  run 
about  the  cliffs  like  so  many  goats — chamois  would  be  more 
poetical  —  and  who  made  as  light  of  the  Stairs  as  the  go 
vernor  himself. 

When  Mark  reached  the  Peak  again,  he  found  matters 
drawing  near  to  a  crisis.  The  canoes  were  within  a  league 
of  the  island,  coming  on  steadily  in  line,  and  paddling  with 
measured  sweeps  of  their  paddles.  As  yet,  the  sail  of 
Juno's  boat  had  escaped  them.  This  was  doubtless  owing 
to  their  lowness  in  the  water,  and  the  distance  that  still 


248  THE  CRATER; 

separated  them.  The  Dido  was  about  five  miles  from  the 
northern  end  of  the  island,  while  the  fleet  was  some  five 
more  to  the  southward  of  it.  This  placed  the  two  almost 
ten  miles  apart ;  though  each  seemed  so  near,  seen  from 
the  elevation  of  the  Peak,  that  one  might  have  fancied 
that  he  could  throw  a  shot  into  either. 

Unus  v  as  the  great  point  of  interest  for  the  moment. 
He  was  just  coming  out  clear  of  the  island,  and  might  be 
seen  with  the  naked  eye,  in  that  pure  atmosphere,  a  dark 
speck  floating  on  the  undulating  surface  of  the  ocean.  By 
the  aid  of  the  glass,  there  was  no  difficulty  in  watching  his 
smallest  movement.  With  a  steady  and  sinewy  stroke  of 
his  arms,  the  young  savage  pursued  his  way,  keeping  to 
windward,  as  instructed  by  his  sister,  and  making  a  pro 
gress  in  the  midst  of  those  rolling  billows  that  was  really 
wonderful.  The  wind  was  not  very  fresh,  nor  were  the 
seas  high ;  but  the  restless  ocean,  even  in  its  slumbers, 
exhibits  the  repos.e  of  a  giant,  whose  gentlest  heavings  are 
formidable  and  to  be  looked  to.  In  one  particular,  our 
colonists  were  favoured.  Owing  to  some  accidental  cir 
cumstances  of  position,  a  current  set  round  the  northern 
end  of  the  island,  and  diffused  itself  on  its  western  side 
by  expanding  towards  the  south.  This  carried  the  canoes 
from  the  boat  and  the  cove,  and  insomuch  increased  Juno's 
chance  of  escape. 

The  meeting  between  Unus  and  the  boat  took  place 
when  the  latter  was  within  a  league  of  the  land.  As  the 
sailing  directions  were  for  every  craft  to  fall  in  with  the 
island  rather  to  windward  of  the  Peak,  on  account  of  the 
very  current  just  mentioned,  it  was  questionable  with  Mark 
and  Betts  whether  any  in  the  canoes  could  now  perceive 
the  boat,  on  account  of  the  intervening  heights.  It  was 
pretty  certain  no  one,  as  yet,  had  made  this  important  dis 
covery,  for  the  impetuosity  of  savages  would  instantly 
have  let  the  fact  be  known  through  their  shouts  and  their 
eagerness  to  chase.  On  the  contrary,  all  remained  tran 
quil  in  the  fleet,  which  continued  to  approach  the  land 
with  a  steady  but  regulated  movement,  that  looked  as  if  a 
secret  awe  pervaded  the  savages  as  they  drew  nearer  and 
nearer  to  that  unknown  and  mysterious  world.  To  them 
the  approaching  revelations  were  doubtless  of  vast  import; 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  249 

and  the  stoutest  heart  among  them  must  have  entertained 
some  such  sensations  as  were  impressed  on  the  spirits  of 
Columbus  and  his  companions,  when  they  drew  near  to 
the  shores  of  Guanahani. 

In  the  mean  time,  Juno  came  confidingly  on,  shaping 
her  course  rather  more  to  windward  than  usual  even,  on 
account  of  the  lightness  of  the  breeze.  This  effectually 
prevented  tier  seeing  or  being  seen  from  the  canoes ;  the 
parties  diagonally  drawing  nearer,  in  utter  ignorance  of 
each  oher's  existence.  As  for  Unus,  he  manoeuvred  quite 
skilfully.  After  getting  a  couple  of  miles  off  the  land,  he 
swam  directly  to  windward ;  and  it  was  well  he  did,  the 
course  of  the  boat  barely  permitting  his  getting  well  on  her 
weather-bow,  when  it  was  time  to  think  of  boarding. 

Unus  displayed  great  judgment  in  this  critical  part  of 
the  affair.  So  accurately  did  he  measure  distances,  that 
he  got  alongside  of  the  Dido,  with  his  hand  on  her  weather 
gunwale,  without  Juno's  having  the  least  idea  that  he  was 
anywhere  near  her.  At  one  effort  he  was  in  the  boat ;  and 
while  the  girl  was  still  uttering  her  scream  of  alarm,  he 
stood  holding  out  the  note,  pronouncing  the  word  "  Missus" 
as  well  as  he  could.  The  girl  had  acquired  too  much 
knowledge  of  the  habits  of  the  South  Sea  islanders,  while 
passing  through  and  sojourning  in  the  different  groups  she 
had  visited,  to  be  overwhelmed  with  the  occurrence.  What 
is  more,  she  recognised  the  young  Indian  at  a  glance; 
some  passages  of  gallantry  having  actually  taken  place  be 
tween  them  during  the  two  months  Heaton  and  his  party 
remained  among  Ooroony's  people.  To  be  frank  with  the 
reader,  the  first  impression  of  Juno  was,  that  the  note  thus 
tendered  to  her  was  a  love-letter,  though  its  contents  in 
stantly  undeceived  her.  The  exclamation  and  changed 
manner  of  the  girl  told  Unus  that  all  was  right;  and  he 
went  quietly  to  work  to  take  in  the  sail,  as  the  most  effectual 
method  of  concealing  the  presence  of  the  boat  from  the 
thousand  hostile  and  searching  eyes  in  the  canoes.  The 
moment  Mark  saw  the  canvas  come  in,  he  cried  out  '  all 
is  well/  and  descended  swiftly  from  the  Peak,  to  hasten 
to  a  point  where  he  could  give  the  necessary  attentions  to 
the  movements  of  Waally  and  his  fleet. 


250  THE  CRATER; 


CHAPTEK  XYII 

"Ho!  strike  the  flag-staff  deep,  Sir  Knight,— 

Ho  !  scatter  flowers,  fair  maids, — 
Ho !  gunners  fire  a  loud  salute — 
Ho  !  gallants,  draw  your  blades ; — " 

MACAULAY. 

So  much  time  had  passed  in  the  execution  of  the  plan 
of  Unus,  that  the  canoes  were  close  under  the  cliffs,  when 
the  governor  and  his  party  reached  the  wood  that  fringed 
their  summits,  directly  over  the  northern  end  of  their  line. 
Even  this  extremity  of  their  formation  was  a  mile  or  two 
to  leeward  of  the  cove,  and  all  the  craft,  catamarans  in 
cluded,  were  drifting  still  further  south,  under  the  influence 
of  the  current.  So  long  as  this  state  of  things  continued, 
there  was  nothing  for  the  colonists  to  apprehend,  since  they 
knew  landing  at  any  other  spot  than  the  cove  was  out  of 
the  question.  The  strictest  orders  had  been  given  for 
every  one  to  keep  concealed,  a  task  that  was  by  no  means 
difficult,  the  whole  plain  being  environed  with  woods,  and 
its  elevation  more  than  a  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  In 
short,  nothing  but  a  wanton  exposure  of  the  person,  could 
render  it  possible  for  one  on  the  water  to  get  a  glimpse  of 
another  on  the  heights  above  him. 

The  fleet  of  Waally  presented  an  imposing  sight.  Not 
only  were  his  canoes  large,  and  well  filled  with  men,  but 
they  were  garnished  with  the  usual  embellishments  of 
savage  magnificence.  Feathers  and  flags,  and  symbols  of 
war  and  power,  were  waving  and  floating  over  the  prows 
of  most  of  them,  while  the  warriors  they  contained  were 
gay  in  their  trappings.  It  was  apparent,  however,  to  the 
members  of  the  council,  who  watched  every  movement  of 
the  fleet  with  the  utmost  vigilance,  that  their  foes  were 
oppressed  with  doubts  concerning  the  character  of  the 
place  they  had  ventured  so  far  to  visit.  The  smoke  of  the 
Volcano  was  visible  to  them,  beyond  a  doubt,  and  here 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  251 

was  a  wall  of  rock  interposed  between  them  and  the  ac 
complishment  of  their  desire  to  land.  In  this  last  respect, 
Rancocus  Island  offered  a  shore  very  different  from  that 
of  Vulcan's  Peak.  The  first,  in  addition  to  the  long,  low 
point  so  often  mentioned,  had  everywhere  a  beach  of  some 
sort  or  other ;  while,  on  the  last,  the  waves  of  the  Pacific 
rose  and  fell  as  against  a  precipice,  marking  their  power 
merely  by  a  slight  discoloration  of  the  iron-bound  coast. 
Those  superstitious  and  ignorant  beings  naturally  would 
connect  all  these  unusual  circumstances  with  some  super 
natural  agencies ;  and  Heaton  early  gave  it  as  his  opinion 
that  Waally,  of  whom  he  had  some  personal  knowledge, 
was  hesitating,  and  doubtful  of  the  course  he  ought  to 
pursue,  on  account  of  this  feeling  of  superstition.  When 
this  opinion  was  expressed,  the  governor  suggested  the  ex 
pediency  of  firing  one  of  the  carronades,  under  the  suppo 
sition  that  the  roar  of  the  gun,  and  most  especially  the 
echo,  of  which  there  was  one  in  particular  that  was  truly 
terrific,  might  have  the  effect  to  frighten  away  the  whole 
party.  Heaton  was  in  doubt  about  the  result,  for  Waally 
and  his  people  knew  something  of  artillery,  though  of 
echoes  they  could  not  know  anything  at  all.  Nothing  like 
an  echo,  or  indeed  a  hill,  was  to  be  found  in  the  low 
coral  islands  of  their  group,  and  the  physical  agents  of 
producing  such  sounds  were  absolutely  wanting  among 
them.  It  might  be  that  something  like  an  echo  had  been 
heard  at  Rancocus  Island,  but  it  must  have  been  of  a  very 
different  calibre  from  that  which  Heaton  and  Mark  were 
in  the  habit  of  making  for  the  amusement  of  the  females, 
by  firing  their  fowling-pieces  down  the  Stairs.  As  yet 
neither  of  the  guns  had  been  fired  from  the  proper  point, 
which  was  the  outer  battery,  or  that  on  the  shelf  of  rock, 
though  a  very  formidable  roaring  had  been  made  by  the 
report  of  the  gun  formerly  fired,  as  an  experiment  to  ascer 
tain  how  far  it  would  command  the  entrance  of  the  cove. 
After  a  good  deal  of  discussion,  it  was  decided  to  try  the 
experiment,  and  Betts,  who  knew  all  about  the  means  ne 
cessary  to  produce  the  greatest  reverberations,  was  des 
patched  to  the  shelf-battery  with  instructions  to  scale  its 
gun,  by  pointing  it  along  the  cliff  and  making  all  the 
uproar  he  could. 


252  THE  CRATER; 

This  plan  was  carried  out  just  as  Waally  had  assem 
bled  his  chiefs  around  his  own  canoe,  whither  he  had  called 
them  by  an  order,  to  consult  on  the  manner  in  which  the 
entire  coast  of  the  island  ought  to  be  examined,  that  a 
landing  might  be  effected.  The  report  of  the  gun  came 
quite  unexpectedly  to  all  parties ;  the  echo,  which  rolled 
along  the  cliffs  for  miles,  being  absolutely  terrific !  Owing 
to  the  woods  and  intervening  rocks,  the  natives  could  see 
no  smoke,  which  added  to  their  surprise,  ana  was  doubt 
less  one  reason  they  did  not,  at  first,  comprehend  the  loner, 
cracking,  thundering  sounas  that,  as  it  might  be,  rolled 
out  towards  them  from  the  island.  A  cry  arose  that  the 
strange  rocks  were  speaking,  and  that  the  Gods  of  the 
place  were  angry.  This  was  followed  by  a  general  and 
confused  flight;  —  the  canoes,  paddling  away  as  if  their 
people  were  apprehensive  of  being  buried  beneath  the 
tumbling  rocks.  For  half  an  hour  nothing  was  seen  but 
frantic  efforts  to  escape,  nothing  heard  but  the  dip  of  the 
paddle  and  the  wash  of  its  rise. 

Thus  far  the  plan  of  the  governor  had  succeeded  even 
beyond  his  expectations.  Could  he  get  rid  of  these  savages 
without  bloodshed,  it  would  afford  him  sincere  delight,  it 
being  repugnant  to  all  his  feelings  to  sweep  away  rows  of 
such  ignorant  men  before  the  murderous  fire  of  his  cannon. 
While  he  and  Heaton  were  congratulating  each  other  on 
the  encouraging  appearances,  a  messenger  came  down  from 
the  Peak,  where  Bridget  remained  on  the  look-out,  to  re 
port  that  the  boat  had  drifted  in,  and  was  getting  close 
under  the  cliffs,  on  the  northern  end  of  the  island,  which 
was  in  fact  coming  close  under  the  Peak  itself.  A  signal 
to  push  for  the  cove  had  been  named  to  Juno,  and  Bridget 
desired  to  know  whether  it  ought  to  be  made,  else  the  boat 
would  shortly  be  too  near  in,  to  see  it.  The  governor 
thought  the  moment  favourable,  for  the  canoes  were  still 
paddling  in  a  body  away  from  the  spot  whence  the  roar 
had  proceeded,  and  their  course  carried  them  to  the  south 
ward  and  westward,  while  Unus  would  approach  from  the 
northward  and  eastward.  Word  was  sent,  accordingly,  to 
make  the  signal. 

Bridget  no  sooner  received  this  order  than  she  showed 
the  flag,  which  was  almost  immediately  answered  by 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  253 

setting  the  boat's  sail.  Unus  now  evidently  took  the  direc 
tion  of  matters  on  board  the  Dido.  It  is  probable  he  ap 
preciated  the  effect  of  the  gun  and  its  echo,  the  first  of 
which  he  fully  comprehended,  though  the  last  was  as  great 
and  as  awful  a  mystery  to  him,  as  to  any  one  of  his  coun 
trymen.  Nevertheless,  he  imputed  the  strange  and  fearful 
roar  of  the  cliffs  to  some  control  of  the  whites  over  the 
power  of  the  hills,  and  regarded  it  as  a  friendly  roar,  even 
while  he  trembled.  Not  so  would  it  be  with  his  country 
men,  did  he  well  know;  they  would  retire  before  it;  and 
the  signal  being  given  at  that  instant,  the  young  Indian 
had  no  hesitation  about  the  course  he  ought  to  take. 

Unus  understood  sailing  a  boat  perfectly  well.  On  set 
ting  his  sail,  he  stood  on  in  the  Dido  until  he  was  obliged 
to  bear  up  on  account  of  the  cliffs.  This  brought  him  so 
close  to  the  rocks  as  greatly  to  diminish  the  chances  of 
being  seen.  There  both  wind  and  current  aided  his  pro 
gress;  the  first  drawing  round  the  end  of  the  island,  the 
coast  of  which  it  followed  in  a  sort  of  eddy,  for  some  time, 
and  the  latter  setting  down  towards  the  cove,  which  was 
less  than  two  miles  from  the  north  bluff.  In  twenty  mi 
nutes  after  he  had  made  sail,  Unus  was  entering  the  secret 
little  harbour,  Waally  and  his  fleet  being  quite  out  of  sight 
from  one  as  low  as  the  surface  of  the  ocean,  still  paddling 
away  to  the  south-west,  as  hard  as  they  could. 

Great  was  the  exultation  of  the  colonists,  at  this  escape 
of  Juno's.  It  even  surpassed  their  happiness  at  the  retreat 
of  their  invaders.  If  the  boat  were  actually  unseen,  the 
governor  believed  the  impression  was  sufficient  to  keep  the 
savages  aloof  for  a  long  time,  if  not  for  ever;  since  they 
would  not  fail  to  ascribe  the  roar,  and  the  smoke  of  the 
volcano,  and  all  the  mysteries  of  the  place,  to  supernatural 
agencies.  If  the  sail  had  been  seen,  however,  it  was  pos 
sible  that,  on  reflection,  their  courage  might  revive,  and 
more  would  be  seen  of  them.  Unus  was  extolled  by  every 
body,  and  seemed  perfectly  happy.  Peggy  communicated 
his  thoughts,  which  were  every  way  in  favour  of  his  new 
friends.  Waally  he  detested.  He  denounced  him  as  a 
ruthless  tyrant,  and  declared  he  would  prefer  death  to  sub 
mission  to  his  exactions.  Juno  highly  approved  of  all  hig 
sentiments,  and  was  soon  known  as  a  sworn  friend  of 
22 


254  THE  CRATER; 

Peggy's.  This  hatred  of  tyranny  is  innate  in  man,  but  it 
is  necessary  to  distinguish  between  real  oppression  and 
those  restraints  which  are  wholesome,  if  not  indispensable 
to  human  happiness.  As  for  the  canoes,  they  were  soon 
out  of  sight  in  the  south-western  board,  running  off,  under 
their  sails,  before  the  wind.  Waally,  himself,  was  too 
strong-minded  and  resolute,  to  be  as  much  overcome  by 
the  echo,  as  his  companions ;  but,  so  profound  and  general 
was  the  awe  excited,  that  he  did  not  think  it  advisable  to 
persevere  in  his  projects,  at  a  moment  so  discouraging. 
Acquiescing  in  the  wishes  of  all  around  him,  the  expedi 
tion  drew  off  from  the  island,  making  the  best  of  its  way 
back  to  the  place  from  which  it  had  last  sailed.  All  these 
circumstances  became  known  to  the  colonists,  in  the  end, 
as  well  as  the  reasoning  and  the  more  minute  incidents 
that  influenced  the  future  movements.  For  the  time  be 
ing,  however,  Woolston  and  his  friends  were  left  to  their 
own  conjectures  on  the  subject ;  which,  however,  were  not 
greatly  out  of  the  way.  It  was  an  hour  after  Juno  and 
Unus  were  safe  up  on  the  plain,  before  the  look-outs  at  the 
Peak  finally  lost  sight  of  the  fleet,  which,  when  last  seen, 
was  steering  a  course  that  would  carry  it  between  the 
volcano  and  Rancocus  Island,  and  might  involve  it  in  se 
rious  difficulties  in  the  succeeding  night.  There  was  no 
land  in  sight  from  the  highest  points  on  Rancocus  Island, 
nor  any  indications  of  land,  in  a  south-westerly  direction ; 
and,  did  the  canoes  run  past  the  latter,  the  imminent  dan 
ger  of  a  general  catastrophe  would  be  the  consequence. 
Once  at  sea,  under  an  uncertainty  as  to  the  course  to  be 
steered,  the  situation  of  those  belonging  to  the  expedition 
would  be  painful,  indeed,  nor  could  the  results  be  foreseen. 
Waaly,  nevertheless,  escaped  the  danger.  Edging  off  to 
keep  aloof  from  the  mysterious  smoke,  which  troubled  his 
followers  almost  as  much  as  the  mysterious  echoes,  the 
party,  most  fortunately  for  themselves,  got  a  distant  view 
of  the  mountains  for  which  they  were  running,  and  altered 
their  course  in  sufficient  time  to  reach  their  place  of  desti 
nation,  by  the  return  of  light  the  succeeding  morning. 

All  thoughts  of  the  expedition  to  Rancocus  Island  were 
temporarily  abandoned  by  the  governor  and  his  council. 
Mark  was  greatly  disappointed,  nor  did  his  regrets  cease 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  255 

with  disappointment  only.  Should  Waally  leave  a  portion 
of  his  people  on  that  island,  a  collision  must  occur,  sooner 
or  later  ;  there  being  a  moral  impossibility  of  the  two  colo 
nies  continuing  friends  while  so  near  each  other.  The 
nature  of  an  echo  would  be  ascertained,  before  many 
months,  among  the  hills  of  Rancocus  Island,  and  when  that 
came  to  be  understood,  there  was  an  end  of  the  sacred 
character  that  the  recent  events  had  conferred  on  the 
Peak.  Any  straggling  vagabond,  or  runaway  from  a  ship, 
might  purchase  a  present  importance  by  Explaining  things, 
and  induce  the  savages  to  renew  their  efforts.  In  a  word, 
there  was  the  moral  certainty  that  hostilities  must  be  re 
newed  ere  many  months,  did  Waally  remain  so  near  them, 
and  the  question  now  seriously  arose,  whether  it  were  bet 
ter  to  press  the  advantage  already  obtained,  and  drive  him 
back  to  his  group,  or  to  remain  veiled  behind  the  sort  of 
mystery  that  at  present  enshrouded  them.  These  points 
were  gravely  debated,  and  became  subjects  of  as  great 
interest  among  the  colonists,  as  ever  banks,  or  abolition 
ism,  or  antimasonry,  or  free-trade,  or  any  other  of  the 
crotchets  of  the  day,  could  possibly  be  in  America.  Many 
were  the  councils  that  were  convened  to  settle  this  impor 
tant  point  of  policy,  which,  after  all,  like  most  other  mat 
ters  of  moment,  was  decided  more  by  the  force  of  circum 
stances,  than  by  any  of  the  deductions  of  human  reason. 
The  weakness  of  the  colony  and  the  dangers  to  its  exist 
ence,  disposed  of  the  question  of  an  aggressive  war. 
Waally  was  too  strong  to  be  assailed  by  a  dozen  enemies, 
and  all  the  suggestions  of  prudence  were  in  favour  of  re 
maining  quiet,  until  the  Friend  Abraham  White  could,  at 
least,  be  made  available  in  the  contest.  Supported  by  that 
vessel,  indeed,  matters  would  be  changed;  and  Mark 
thought  it  would  be  in  his  power  to  drive  in  Waally,  and 
even  to  depose  him  and  place  Ooroony  at  the  head  of  the 
natives  once  more.  To  finish  and  launch  the  schooner, 
therefore,  was  now  the  first  great  object,  and,  after  a  week 
of  indecision  and  consultations,  it  was  determined  to  set 
about  that  duty  with  vigour. 

It  will  be  easily  seen,  that  the  getting  of  the  Abraham 
into  the  water  was  an  affair  of  a  good  deal  of  delicacy, 
under  the  circumstances.  The  strait  between  the  Peak 


256  THE   CRATER; 

and  Cape  South  was  thirty  miles  wide,  and  it  was  twenty 
more  to  the  crater.  Thus  the  party  at  work  on  the  vessel 
would  be  fully  fifty  miles  from  the  main  abodes  of  the 
colony,  and  thrown  quite  out  of  the  affair  should  another 
invasion  be  attempted.  As  for  bringing  the  Neshamony, 
the  Did.,,  the  Bridget,  and  the  lighter,  into  the  combat, 
everybody  was  of  opinion  it  would  be  risking  too  much. 
It  is  true,  one  of  the  swivels  was  mounted  on  the  former, 
and  might  be  of  service,  but  the  natives  had  got  to  be  too 
familiar  with  fire-arms  to  render  it  prudent  to  rely  on 
the  potency  of  a  single  swivel,  in  a  conflict  against  a 
force  so  numerous,  and  one  led  by  a  spirit  as  determined 
as  that  of  Waally's  was  known  to  be.  All  idea  of  fighting 
at  sea,  therefore,  until  the  schooner  was  launched,  was  out 
of  the  question,  and  every  energy  was  turned  to  effect  the 
latter  most  important  object.  A  separation  of  the  forces  of 
the  colony  was  inevitable,  in  the  meanwhile ;  and  reliance 
must  be  placed  on  the  protection  of  Providence,  for  keep 
ing  the  enemy  aloof  until  the  vessel  was  ready  for  active 
service. 

The  labour  requiring  as  much  physical  force  as  could 
be  mustered,  the  arrangement  was  settled  in  council  and 
approved  by  the  governor,  on  the  following  plan,  viz. : — 
Mark  was  to  proceed  to  the  Reef  with  all  the  men  that 
could  be  spared,  and  a  portion  of  the  females.  It  was  not 
deemed  safe,  however,  to  leave  the  Peak  with  less  than 
three  defenders,  Heaton,  Peters  and  Unus  being  chosen 
for  that  important  station ;  the  former  commanding,  of 
course.  Mark,  Betts,  Bigelow,  Socrates,  and  Jones, 
formed  the  party  for  the  Reef,  to  which  were  attached 
Bridget,  Martha,  Teresa,  and  the  blacks.  Bigelow  went 
Across,  indeed,  a  day  or  two  before  the  main  party  sailed, 
in  order  to  look  after  Dido,  and  to  get  his  work  forward 
as  fast  as  possible.  When  all  was  ready,  and  that  was 
when  ten  days  had  gone  by  after  the  retreat  of  Waally, 
without  bringing  any  further  tidings  from  him,  the  gover 
nor  sailed  in  the  Neshamony,  having  the  Bridget  and  the 
fighter  in  company,  leaving  the  Dido  for  the  convenience 
,->f  Heaton  and  his  set.  Signals  were  agreed  on,  though 
the  distance  was  so  great  as  to  render  them  of  little  use, 
anless  a  boat  were  mid-channel.  A  very  simple  and  in- 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  257 

genious  expedient,  nevertheless,  was  suggested  by  Mark, 
in  connection  with  this  matter.  A  single  tree  grew  so  near 
the  Peak  as  to  be  a  conspicuous  object  from  the  ocean ;  it 
was  not  large,  though  it  could  be  seen  at  a  great  distance, 
more  particularly  in  the  direction  of  the  Reef.  The  go 
vernor  intimated  an  intention  to  send  a  boat  daily  far 
enough  out  into  the  strait  to  ascertain  whether  this  tree 
were,  or  were  not  standing ;  and  Heaton  was  instructed  to 
have  it  felled  as  soon  as  he  had  thoroughly  ascertained 
that  Waally  was  abroad  again  with  hostile  intentions. 
Other  signals  were  also  agreed  on,  in  order  to  regulate 
the  movements  of  the  boats,  in  the  event  of  their  being 
called  back  to  the  Peak  to  repel  an  invasion. 

With  the  foregoing  arrangements  completed  and  tho 
roughly  understood,  the  governor  set  sail  for  the  Reef,  ac 
companied  by  his  little  squadron.  It  was  an  exquisitely 
beautiful  day,  one  in  which  all  the  witchery  of  the  climate 
developed  itself,  soothing  the  nerves  and  animating  the 
spirits.  Bridget  had  lost  most  of  her  apprehensions  of  the 
natives,  and  could  laugh  with  her  husband  and  play  with 
her  child  almost  as  freely  as  before  the  late  events.  Every 
body,  indeed,  was  in  high  spirits,  the  launching  of  the 
schooner  being  regarded  as  a  thing  that  would  give  them 
complete  command  of  the  adjacent  seas. 

The  passage  was  short,  a  fresh  breeze  blowing,  and  four 
hours  after  quitting  the  cliffs,  the  Neshamony  was  under 
the  lee  of  Cape  South,  and  heading  for  the  principal  inlet. 
As  the  craft  glided  along,  in  perfectly  smooth  water  now, 
Mark  noted  the  changes  that  time  was  making  on  those 
rocks,  which  had  so  lately  emerged  from  the  depths  of  the 
ocean.  The  prairie,  in  particular,  was  every  way  worthy 
of  his  attention.  A  mass  of  sea-weed,  which  rested  on  a 
sort  of  stratum  of  mud  immediately  after  the  eruption,  had 
now  been  the  favourite  pasturage  of  the  hogs  for  more  than 
a  twelvemonth.  These  hogs  at  the  present  time  exceeded 
fifty  full-grown  animals,  and  there  were  twice  that  number 
of  grunters  at  their  heels.  Then  the  work  they  had  done 
on  the  Prairie  was  incredible.  Not  less  than  hundreds  of 
acres  had  they  rooted  over,  mixing  the  sea-weed  with  the 
mud,  and  fast  converting  the  whole  into  soil.  The  rains 
had  washed  away  the  salt,  or  converted  it  into  manure,  as 
22* 


258  THE   CRATER; 

well  as  contributing  to  the  more  rapid  decay  of  the  vege 
table  substances.  In  that  climate  the  changes  are  very 
rapid,  and  Mark  saw  that  another  year  or  two  would  con 
vert  the  whole  of  that  vast  range,  which  had  been  formerly 
computed  at  a  surface  of  a  thousand  acres,  into  very  re 
spectable  pastures,  if  not  into  meadows.  Of  meadows, 
however,  there  was  very  little  necessity  in  that  latitude ; 
the  eternal  summer  that  reigned  furnishing  pasturage  the 
year  round.  The  necessary  grasses  might  be  wanting  to 
seed  down  so  large  a  surface,  but  those  which  Socrates 
had  put  in  were  well-rooted,  and  it  was  pretty  certain  they 
would,  sooner  or  later,  spread  themselves  over  the  whole 
field.  In  defiance  of  the  hogs,  and  their  increasing  in 
roads,  large  patches  were  already  green  and  flourishing. 
What  is  more,  young  trees  were  beginning  to  show  them 
selves  along  the  margin  of  the  channels.  Heaton  had 
brought  over  from  Betto's  group  several  large  panniers 
made  of  green  willows,  and  these  Socrates  had  cut  into 
strips,  and  thrust  into  the  mud.  Almost  without  an  excep 
tion  they  had  struck  out  roots,  and  never  ceasing,  day  or 
night,  to  grow,  they  were  already  mostly  of  the  height  of  a 
man.  Four  or  five  years  would  convert  them  into  so  many 
beautiful,  if  not  very  useful  trees. 

Nor  was  this  all.  Heaton,  under  the  influence  of  his 
habits,  had  studied  the  natures  of  the  different  trees  he  had 
met  with  on  the  other  islands.  The  cocoa-nut,  in  particu 
lar,  abounded  in  both  groups,  and  finding  it  was  a  tree  that 
much  affected  low  land  and  salt  water,  he  had  taken  care 
to  set  out  various  samples  of  his  roots  and  fruits,  on  cer 
tain  detached  islets  near  this  channel,  where  the  soil  and 
situation  induced  him  to  believe  they  would  flourish.  Sea 
'  sand  he  was  of  opinion  was  the  most  favourable  for  the 
growth  of  this  tree,  and  he  had  chosen  the  sites  of  his 
plantations  with  a  view  to  those  advantages.  On  the  Peak 
cocoa-nuts  were  to  be  found,  but  they  were  neither  very 
fine,  nor  in  very  large  quantities.  So  long  as  Mark  had 
that  island  to  himself,  the  present  supply  would  more  than 
equal  the  demand,  but  with  the  increase  of  the  colony  a 
greater  number  of  the  trees  would  become  very  desirable. 
Five  or  six  years  would  be  needed  to  produce  the  fruit- 
bearing  tree,  and  the  governor  was  pleased  to  find  that  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  259 

growth  of  one  of  those  years  had  been  already  secured. 
In  the  case  of  those  he  had  himself  planted,  in  and  on  the 
crater,  near  three  years  had  contributed  to  their  growth, 
and  neither  the  Guano  nor  Loam  Island  having  been  for 
gotten,  many  of  them  were  now  thirty  feet  high.     As  he 
approached  the  crater,  on  that  occasion,  he  looked  at  those 
promising  fruits  of  his  early  and  provident  care  for  the 
future  with  great  satisfaction,  for  seldom  was  the  labour 
of  man  better  rewarded.     Mark  well  knew  the  value  of 
this  tree,  which  was  of  use  in  a  variety  of  ways,  in  addi 
tion  to  the  delicious  and  healthful  fruit  it  bears;  delicious 
and  healthful  when  eaten  shortly  after  it  is  separated  from 
the  tree.     The  wood  of  the  kernel  could  be  polished,  and 
converted  into  bowls,  that  were  ornamental  as  well  as  use 
ful.     The  husks  made  a  capital  cordage,  and  a  very  re 
spectable   sail-cloth,   being  a  good   substitute  for  hemp, 
though  hemp,  itself,  was  a  plant  that  might  be  grown  on 
the  prairies  to  an  almost  illimitable  extent.     The  leaves 
were  excellent  for  thatching,  as  well  as  for  making  brooms, 
mats,  hammocks,  baskets  and  a  variety  of  such  articles, 
while  the  trunks  could  be  converted  into  canoes,  gutters, 
and  timber  generally.    There  was  also  one  other  expensive 
use  of  this  tree,  which  the  governor  had  learned  from  Hea- 
ton.     While  Bridget  was  still  confined  to  the  ship,  after 
the  birth  of  her  daughter,  Mark  had  brought  her  a  dish 
of  greens,  which  she  pronounced  the  most  delicious  of  any 
thing  in  its  way  she  had  ever  tasted.     It  was  composed  of 
the  young  and  delicate  leaves  of  the  new  growth,  or  of  the 
summit  of  the  cocoa-nut  tree,  somewhat  resembling  the 
artichoke  in  their  formation,  though  still  more  exquisite  in 
taste.     But  the  tree  from  which  this  treat  was  obtained 
died, — a  penalty  that  must  ever  be  paid  to  partake  of  that 
dish.     As  soon  as  Bridget  learned  this,  she  forbade  the 
cutting  of  any  more  for  her  use,  at  least.     All  the  boats 
got  into  port  in  good  season,  and  the  Reef  once  more  be 
came  a  scene  of  life  and  activity.    The  schooner  was  soon 
completed,  and  it  only  remained  to  put  her  into  the  water. 
This  work  was  already  commenced  by  Bigelow,  and  the 
governor  directed  everybody  to  lend  a  hand  in  effecting 
so  desirable  an  object.      Bigelow  had  all  his  materials 
ready,  and  so  perseveringly  did  our  colonists  work,  that 


260  THE   CRATER; 

the  schooner  was  all  ready  to  be  put  into  the  water  on  the 
evening  of  the  second  day.  The  launch  was  deferred  only  to 
have  the  benefit  of  daylight.  That  afternoon  Mark,  accom 
panied  by  his  wife,  had  gone  in  the  Bridget,  his  favourite 
boat,  to  look  for  the  signal  tree.  He  went  some  distance 
into  the  strait,  ere  he  was  near  enough  to  get  a  sight  of 
it  even  with  the  glass ;  when  he  did  procure  a  view,  there 
it  was  precisely  as  he  had  last  seen  it.  Putting  the  helm 
of  the  boat  up,  the  instant  he  was  assured  of  his  fact,  the 
governor  wore  short  round,  making  the  best  of  his  way 
back  to  the  crater,  again.  The  distances,  it  will  be  re 
membered,  were  considerable,  and  it  required  time  to 
make  the  passage.  The  sun  was  setting  as  Mark  was  run 
ning  along  the  channel  to  the  Reef,  the  young  man  point 
ing  out  to  his  charming  wife  the  growth  of  the  trees,  the 
tints  of  the  evening  sky,  the  drove  of  hogs,  the  extent  of 
his  new  meadows,  and  such  other  objects  as  would  be 
likely  to  interest  both,  in  the  midst  of  such  a  scene.  The 
boat  rounded  a  point  where  a  portion  of  the  hogs  had  been 
sleeping,  and  as  it  came  sweeping  up,  the  animals  rose  in 
a  body,  snuffed  the  air,  and  began  scampering  off  in  the 
way  conformable  to  their  habits,  Mark  laughing  and  point- 
ing  with  his  fingers  to  draw  Bridget's  attention  to  their 
antics. 

"  There  are  more  of  the  creatures,"  said  Bridget ; 
"  yonder,  on  the  further  side  of  the  prairie — I  dare  say 
the  two  parties  will  join  each  other,  and  have  a  famous 
scamper,  in  company." 

"  More !"  echoed  Mark ;  "  that  can  hardly  be,  as  we 
passed  some  thirty  of  them  several  miles  to  the  southward. 
— What  is  it  you  see,  dearest,  that  you  mistake  for  hogs?" 

"  Why,  yonder — more  than  a  mile  from  us ;  on  the  oppo 
site  side  of  the  prairie  and  near  the  water,  in  the  othei 
channel." 

"  The  other  is  not  a  channel  at  all ;  it  is  a  mere  bay  that 
leads  to  nothing ;  so  none  of  our  boats  or  people  can  be 
there.  The  savages,  as  I  am  your  husband,  Bridget !" 

Sure  enough,  the  objects  which  Bridget  had  mistaken 
for  mere  hogs,  were  in  truth  the  heads  and  shoulders  of 
some  twenty  Indians  who  were  observing  the  movements  of 
the  boat  from  positions  taken  on  the  other  side  of  the  plain, 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  261 

BO  as  to  conceal  all  but  the  upper  halves  of  their  bodies. 
They  had  two  canoes;  war  canoes,  moreover;  but  these 
were  the  whole  party,  at  that  point  at  least. 

This  was  a  most  grave  discovery.  The  governor  had 
hoped  the  Reef,  so  accessible  on  every  side  by  means  of 
canoes,  would,  for  years  at  least,  continue  to  be  a  terra 
incognita  to  the  savages.  On  this  ignorance  of  the  natives 
would  much  of  its  security  depend,  for  the  united  forces 
of  the  colonists  could  scarcely  suffice  to  maintain  the  place 
against  the  power  of  Waally.  The  matter  as  it  was,  called 
for  all  his  energies,  and  for  the  most  prompt  measures. 

The  first  step  was  to  apprise  the  people  at  the  Reef  of 
the  proximity  of  these  dangerous  neighbours.  As  the  boat 
was  doubtless  seen,  its  sails  rising  above  the  land,  there 
was  no  motive  in  changing  its  course,  or  for  attempting  to 
conceal  it.  The  crater,  ship  and  schooner  on  the  stocks, 
were  all  in  sight  of  the  savages  at  that  moment,  though  not 
less  than  two  leagues  distant,  where  they  doubtless  appear 
ed  indistinct  and  confused.  The  ship  might  produce  an 
influence  in  one  or  two  ways.  It  might  inflame  the  cupi 
dity  of  Waally,  under  the  hope  of  possessing  so  much  trea 
sure,  and  tempt  him  on  to  hasten  his  assault ;  or  it  might 
intimidate  him  by  its  imagined  force,  vessels  rarely  visiting 
the  islands  of  the  Pacific  without  being  prepared  to  defend 
themselves.  The  savages  would  not  be  likely  to  compre 
hend  the  true  condition  of  the  vessel,  but  would  naturally 
suppose  that  she  had  a  full  crew,  and  possessed  the  usual 
means  of  annoying  her  enemies.  All  this  occurred  to  the 
governor  in  the  first  five  minutes  after  his  discovery,  while 
his  boat  was  gliding  onwards  towards  her  haven. 

Bridget  behaved  admirably.  She  trembled  a  little  at 
first,  and  pressed  her  child  to  her  bosom  with  more  than 
the  usual  warmth,  but  her  self-command  was  soon  regained, 
and  from  that  instant,  Mark  found  in  her  a  quick,  inge 
nious,  and  useful  assistant  and  counsellor.  Her  faculties 
and  courage  seemed  to  increase  with  the  danger,  and  so 
far  from  proving  an  encumbrance,  as  might  naturally 
enough  have  been  expected,  she  was  not  only  out  of  the 
way,  as  respects  impediments,  but  she  soon  became  of  real 
use,  and  directed  the  movements  of  the  females  with  almost 


262  THE   CRATER; 

as  much  skill  and  decision  as  Mark  directed  those  of  their 
husbands. 

The  boat  did  not  reach  the  Reef  until  dusk,  or  for  an 
hour  after  the  savages  had  been  seen.  The  colonists  had 
just  left  their  work,  and  the  evening  being  cool  and  refresh 
ing  after  a  warm  summer's  day,  they  were  taking  their 
suppers  under  a  tent  or  awning,  at  no  great  distance  from 
the  ship-yard,  when  the  governor  joined  them.  This  tent, 
or  awning,  had  been  erected  for  such  purposes,  and  had 
several  advantages  to  recommend  it.  It  stood  quite  near 
the  beach  of  the  spring,  and  cool  fresh  water  was  always 
at  hand.  It  had  a  carpet  of  velvet-like  grass,  too,  a  rare 
thing  for  the  Reef,  on  the  outside  of  the  crater.  But,  there 
were  cavities  on  its  surface,  in  which  foreign  substances 
had  collected,  and  this  was  one  of  them.  Sea-weed,  loam, 
dead  fish,  and  rain-water  had  made  a  thin  soil  on  about  an 
acre  of  rocks  at  this  spot,  and  the  rain  constantly  assisting 
vegetation,  the  grass-seed  had  taken  root  there,  and  this 
being  its  second  season,  Betts  had  found  the  sward  already 
sufficient  for  his  purposes,  and  caused  an  awning  to  be 
spread,  converting  the  grass  into  a  carpet.  There  might 
now  have  been  a  dozen  similar  places  on  the  reef,  so  many 
oases  in  its  desert,  where  soil  had  formed  and  grass  was 
growing.  No  one  doubted  that,  in  time  and  with  care, 
those  then  living  might  see  most  of  those  naked  rocks 
clothed  with  verdure,  for  the  progress  of  vegetation  in  such 
a  climate,  favoured  by  those  accidental  causes  which 
seemed  to  prevent  that  particular  region  from  ever  suffer 
ing  by  droughts,  is  almost  magical,  and  might  convert  a 
wilderness  into  a  garden  in  the  course  of  a  very  few  years. 

Mark  did  not  disturb  the  happy  security  in  which  he 
found  his  people  by  any  unnecessary  announcement  of 
danger.  On  the  contrary,  he  spoke  cheerfully,  compli 
mented  them  on  the  advanced  state  of  their  work,  and  took 
an  occasion  to  get  Betts  aside,  when  he  first  communicated 
the  all-important  discovery  he  had  made.  Bob  was  dum- 
founded  at  first ;  for,  like  the  governor  himself,  he  had  be 
lieved  the  Reef  to  be  one  of  the  secret  spots  of  the  earth, 
and  had  never  anticipated  an  invasion  in  that  quarter. 
Recovering  himself,  however,  he  was  soon  in  a  state  of 
mind  to  consult  intelligently  and  freely. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  263 

"Then 'we 're  to  expect  the  reptyhs  to-night?"  said 
Betts,  as  soon  as  he  had  regained  his  voice. 

"  I  think  not,"  answered  Mark.  "  The  canoes  I  saw 
were  in  the  false  channel,  and  cannot  possibly  reach  U3 
without  returning  to  the  western  margin  of  the  rocks,  and 
entering  one  of  the  true  passages.  I  rather  think  this  can 
not  be  done  before  morning.  Daylight,  indeed,  may  be 
absolutely  necessary  to  them ;  and  as  the  night  promises  to 
be  dark,  it  is  not  easy  to  see  how  strangers  can  find  their 
way  to  us,  among  the  maze  of  passages  they  must  meet. 
By  land,  they  cannot  get  here  from  any  of  the  islands  on 
the  western  side  of  the  group;  and  even  if  landed  on  the 
central  island,  there  is  only  one  route,  and  that  a  crooked 
"one,  which  will  bring  them  here  without  the  assistance  of 
their  canoes.  We  are  reasonably  well  fortified,  Betts, 
through  natural  agencies,  on  that  side ;  and  I  do  not  appre 
hend  seeing  anything  more  of  the  fellows  until  morning." 

"  What  a  misfortin  'tis  that  they  should  ever  have  disco 
vered  the  Reef!" 

"It  certainly  is;  and  it  is  one,  I  confess,  I  had  not  ex 
pected.  But  we  must  take  things  as  they  are,  Betts,  and 
do  our  duty.  Providence — that  all-seeing  Power,  which 
spared  you  and  me  when  so  many  of  our  shipmates  were 
called  away  with  short  notice  —  Providence  may  still  be 
pleased  to  look  on  us  with  favour." 

"  That  puts  me  in  mind,  Mr.  Mark,  of  telling  you  some 
thing  that  I  have  lately  1'arn'd  from  Jones,  who  was  about 
a  good  deal  among  the  savages,  since  his  friend's  marriage 
with  Peggy,  and  before  ke  made  his  escape  to  join  us. 
Jones  says  that,  as  near  as  he  can  find  out,  about  three 
years  ago,  a  ship's  launch  came  into  Betto's  Land,  as  we 
call  it — Waally's  Country,  however,  is  meant;  and  that  is 
a  part  of  the  group  I  never  ventured  into,  seeing  that  my 
partic'lar  friend,  Ooroony,  and  Waally,  was  always  at  dag 
gers  drawn — but  a  ship's  launch  came  in  there,  about  three 
years  since,  with  seven  living  men  in  it.  Jones  could  never 
get  a  sight  of  any  of  the  men,  for  Waally  is  said  to*have 
kept  them  all  hard  at  work  for  himself;  but  he  got  tole 
rable  accounts  of  them,  as  well  as  of  the  boat  in  which 
they  arrived." 

"  Surely,  Bob,  you  do  not  suppose  that  launch  to  have 


264  THE  CRATER; 

been  ours,  and  those  men  to  have  been  a  part  of  our  old 
crew !"  exclaimed  Mark,  with  a  tumult  of  feeling  he  had 
not  experienced  since  he  had  reason  to  think  that  Bridget 
was  about  to  be  restored  to  him. 

"  Indeed,  but  I  do,  sir.  The  savages  told  Jones  that  the 
boat  had  a  bird  painted  in  its  starn-sheets ;  and  that  was 
the  case  with  our  launch,  Mr.  Mark,  which  was  ornament 
ed  with  a  spread-eagle  in  that  very  spot.  Then,  one  of  the 
men  was  said  to  have  a  red  mark  on  his  face ;  and  you  may 
remember,  sir,  that  Bill  Brown  had  a  nat'ral  brand  of  that 
sort.  Jones  only  mentioned  the  thing  this  arternoon,  as 
we  was  at  work  together ;  and  I  detarmined  to  let  you 
know  all  about  it,  at  the  first  occasion.  Depend  on  it,  Mr. 
Woolston,  some  of  our  chaps  is  still  living." 

This  unexpected  intelligence  momentarily  drove  the 
recollection  of  the  present  danger  from  the  governor's 
mind.  He  sent  for  Jones,  and  questioned  him  closely 
touching  the  particulars  of  his  information ;  the  answers 
he  received  certainly  going  far  towards  corroborating 
Betts's  idea  of  the  character  of  the  unknown  men.  Jones 
was  never  able  even  to  get  on  the  island  where  these  men 
were  said  to  be ;  but  he  had  received  frequent  descriptions 
of  their  ages,  appearances,  numbers,  &,c.  It  was  also 
reported  by  those  who  had  seen  them,  that  several  of  the 
party  had  died  of  hunger  before  the  boat  reached  the 
group ;  and  that  only  about  half  of  those  who  had  origi 
nally  taken  to  the  boat,  which  belonged  to  a  ship  that  had 
been  wrecked,  lived  to  get  ashore.  The  man  with  a  mark 
on  his  face  was  represented  as  being  very  expert  with  tools, 
and  was  employed  by  Waally  to  build  him  a  canoe  that 
would  live  out  in  the  gales  of  the  ocean.  This  agreed  per 
fectly  with  the  trade  and  appearance  of  Brown,  who  had 
been  the  Rancocus's  carpenter,  and  had  the  sort  of  mark 
so  particularly  described. 

The  time,  the  boat,  the  incidents  of  the  wreck,  meagre 
as  the  last  were,  as  derived  through  the  information  of 
Jones,  and  all  the  other  facts  Mark  could  glean  in  a  close 
examination  of  the  man's  statements,  went  to  confirm  the 
impression  that  a  portion  of  those  who  had  been  carried  to 
leeward  in  the  Rancocus's  launch,  had  escaped  with  their 
lives,  and  were  at  that  moment  prisoners  in  the  power  of 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  265 

the  very  savage  chief  who  now  threatened  his  colony  with 
destruction. 

But  the  emergency  did  not  admit  of  any  protracted  in 
quiry  into,  or  any  consultation  on  the  means  necessary  to 
relieve  their  old  shipmates  from  a  fate  so  miserable.  Cir 
cumstances  required  that  the  governor  should  now  give  his 
attention  to  the  important  concerns  immediately  before 
him. 


CHAPTER  XYIII. 

«  Tr  whom  belongs  this  valley  fair, 
Thai  sleeps  beneath  the  filmy  air, 
Even  like  a  living  thing? 
Silent  as  infant  at  the  breast, 
Save  a  still  sound  that  speaks  of  rest, 
That  streamlet's  murmuring  1" 

WILSOW. 

WHEN  the  governor  had  communicated  to  his  people 
that  the  savages  were  actually  among  the  islands  of  their 
own  group,  something  very  like  a  panic  came  over  them. 
A  few  minutes,  however,  sufficed  to  restore  a  proper  de 
gree  of  confidence,  when  the  arrangements  necessary  to 
their  immediate  security  were  entered  into.  As  some  at 
tention  had  previously  been  bestowed  on  the  fortifications 
of  the  crater,  that  place  was  justly  deemed  the  citadel  of 
the  Reef.  Some  thought  the  ship  would  be  the  most 
easily  defended,  on  account  of  the  size  of  the  crater,  and 
because  it  had  a.  natural  ditch  around  it,  but  so  much  pro 
perty  was  accumulated  in  and  around  the  crater  that  it 
could  not  be  abandoned  without  a  loss  to  which  the  go 
vernor  had  no  idea  of  submitting.  The  gate  of  the  crater 
was  nothing  in  the  way  of  defence,  it  is  true ;  but  one  of 
the  carronades  had  been  planted  so  as  to  command  it,  and 
this  was  thought  sufficient  for  repelling  all  ordinary  as 
saults.  It  has  been  said,  already,  that  the  outer  wall  of 
the  crater  was  perpendicular  at  its  base,  most  probably 
owing  to  the  waves  of  the  ocean  in  that  remote  period 
23 


266  THE   CRATER; 

when  the  whole  Reef  was  washed  by  them  in  every  gale 
of  wind.  This  perpendicular  portion  of  the  rock,  moreover, 
was  much  harder  than  the  ordinary  surface  of  the  Summit, 
owing  in  all  probability  to  the  same  cause.  It  was  even 
polished  in  appearance,  and  in  general  was  some  eighteen 
or  twenty  feet  in  height,  with  the  exception  of  the  two  or 
three  places,  by  one  of  which  Mark  and  Betts  had  clam 
bered  up  on  their  first  visit  to  the  Summit.  These  places, 
always  small,  and  barely  sufficient  to  allow  of  a  man's  find 
ing  footing  on  them,  had  long  been  picked  away,  in  order 
to  prevent  the  inroads  of  Kitty,  and  when  the  men  had 
turned  their  attention  to  rendering  the  place  secure  against 
a  sudden  inroad,  they  being  the  only  points  where  an  ene 
my  could  get  up,  without  resorting  to  ladders  or  artificial 
assistance,  had,  by  means  of  additional  labour,  been  ren 
dered  as  secure  as  all  the  rest  of  the  '  outer  wall,'  as  the 
base  of  the  crater  was  usually  termed  among  them.  It  was 
true,  that  civilized  assailants,  who  had  the  ordinary  means 
at  command,  would  soon  have  mastered  this  obstacle ;  but 
savages  would  not  be  likely  to  come  prepared  to  meet  it. 
The  schooner,  with  her  cradle  and  ways,  had  required  all 
the  loose  timber,  to  the  last  stick,  and  the  enemy  was  not 
likely  to  procure  any  supplies  from  the  ship-yard.  Two 
of  the  carronades  were  on  the  Summit,  judiciously  planted  ; 
two  were  on  board  the  Abraham,  as  was  one  of  the  long 
sixes,  and  the  remainder  of  the  guns,  (three  at  the  rock 
excepted)  were  still  on  board  the  ship. 

Mark  divided  his  forces  for  the  night.  As  Bridget  ha 
bitually  lived  in  the  Rancocus'  cabins,  he  did  not  derange 
her  household  at  all,  but  merely  strengthened  her  crew,  by 
placing  Bigelow  and  Socrates  on  board  her;  each  with  his 
family ;  while  Betts  assumed  the  command  of  the  crater, 
having  for  his  companion  Jones.  These  were  small  garri 
sons  ;  but  the  fortresses  were  strong,  considering  all  the 
circumstances,  and  the  enemy  were  uncivilized,  knowing 
but  little  of  fire-arms.  By  nine  o'clock  everything  was 
arranged,  and  most  of  the  women  and  children  were  on 
their  beds,  though  no  one  there  undressed  that  night. 

Mark  and  Betts  met,  by  agreement,  alongside  of  the 
schooner,  as  soon  as  their  respective  duties  elsowhere 
would  allow.  As  the  Reef,  proper,  was  an  island,  they 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  267 

knew  no  enemy  could  find  his  way  on  it  without  coming 
by  water,  or  by  passing  over  the  narrow  bridge  which  has 
already  been  mentioned  as  crossing  the  little  strait  near 
the  spring.  This  rendered  them  tolerably  easy  for  the 
moment,  though  Mark  had  assured  his  companion  it  was 
not  possible  for  the  canoes  to  get  to  the  Reef  under  several 
hours.  Neither  of  the  men  could  sleep,  however,  and  they 
thought  it  as  well  to  be  on  the  look-out,  and  in  company, 
as  to  be  tossing  about  in  their  berths,  or  hammocks,  by 
themselves.  The  conversation  turned  on  their  prospects, 
almost  as  a  matter  of  course. 

"  We  are  somewhat  short-handed,  sir,  to  go  to  quarters 
ag'in  them  vagabonds/'  observed  Betts,  in  reply  to  some 
remark  of  the  governor's.  "I  counted  a  hundred  and 
three  of  their  craft  when  they  was  off  the  Peak  the  other 
day,  and  not  one  on  'em  all  had  less  than  four  hands  aboard 
it,  while  the  biggest  must  have  had  fifty.  All  told,  I  do 
think,  Mr.  Mark,  they  might  muster  from  twelve  to  fifteen 
hundred  fighting  men." 

"That  has  been  about  my  estimate  of  their  force,  Bob; 
but,  if  they  were  fifteen  thousand,  we  must  bring  them  to 
action,  for  we  fight  for  everything." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,"  answered  Betts,  ejecting  the  tobacco  juice 
in  the  customary  way,  "  there's  reason  in  roasted  eggs,  they 
say,  and  there's  reason  in  firing  a  few  broadsides  afore  a 
body  gives  up.  What  a  different  place  this  here  rock's  got 
to  be,  sir,  from  what  it  was  when  you  and  I  was  floating 
sea-weed  and  rafting  loam  to  it,  to  make  a  melon  or  a  cu 
cumber  bed !  Times  is  changed,  sir,  and  we're  now  at 
war.  Then  it  was  all  peace  and  quiet ;  and  now  it's  all 
hubbub  and  disturbance." 

"  We  have  got  our  wives  here  now,  and  that  I  think 
you'll  admit  is  something,  Bob,  when  you  remember  the 
pains  taken  by  yourself  to  bring  so  great  a  happiness 
about." 

"  Why,  yes,  sir — I'll  allow  the  wives  is  something — " 

"  Ship  ahoy !"  hailed  a  voice  in  good  English,  and  in 
the  most  approved  seaman-like  tones  of  the  voice. 

The  hail  came  from  the  margin  of  the  island  nearest  to 
the  Reef,  or  that  which  was  connected  with  the  latter  bv 


268  THE   CRATER; 

means  of  the  bridge,  but  not  from  a  point  very  near  the 
latter. 

"  In  the  name  of  heavenly  marcy !"  exclaimed  Betts, 
"  what  can  that  mean,  governor  ?" 

"  I  know  that  voice/'  said  Mark,  hurriedly  :  "  and  the 
whole  matter  begins  to  clear  up  to  me.  Who  hails  the 
Rancocus?" 

"Is  that  ship  the  Rancocus,  then?"  answered  the  voiee 
from  the  island. 

"  The  Rancocus,  and  no  other — are  you  not  Bill  Brown, 
her  late  carpenter?" 

"  The  very  same,  God  bless  you,  Mr.  Woolston,  for  I 
now  know  your  voice,  too.  I'm  Bill,  and  right  down  glad 
am  I  to  have  things  turn  out  so.  I  half  suspected  the  truth 
when  I  saw  a  ship's  spars  this  arternoon  in  this  place, 
though  little  did  I  think,  yesterday,  of  ever  seeing  anything 
more  of  the  old  'Cocus.  Can  you  give  me  a  cast  acros5 
this  bit  of  a  ferry,  sir  ?" 

"Are  you  alone,  Bill — or  who  have  you  for  companions  ?" 

"There's  two  on  us,  sir,  only  —  Jim  Wattles  and  I  — 
seven  on  us  was  saved  in  the  launch ;  Mr.  Hillson  and  the 
supercargo  both  dying  afore  we  reached  the  land,  as  did 
the  other  man,  we  seven  still  living,  though  only  two  on  us 
is  here." 

"Are  there  any  black  fellows  with  you? — Any  of  the 
natives?" 

"  Not  one,  sir.  We  gave  'em  the  slip  two  hours  ago,  or 
as  soon  as  we  saw  the  ship's  masts,  being  bent  on  getting 
afloat  in  some  craft  or  other,  in  preference  to  stopping  with 
savages  any  longer.  No,  Mr.  Woolston ;  no  fear  of  them 
to-night,  for  they  are  miles  and  miles  to  leeward,  bothered 
in  the  channels,  where  they'll  be  pretty  sartain  to  pass  the 
night ;  though  you'll  hear  from  'em  in  the  morning.  Jim 
and  I  took  to  our  land  tacks,  meeting  with  a  good  oppor 
tunity,  and  by  running  directly  in  the  wind's  eye,  have 
come  out  here.  We  hid  ourselves  till  the  canoes  was  out 
of  sight,  and  then  we  carried  sail  as  hard  as  we  could.  So 
give  us  a  cast  and  take  us  aboard  the  old  ship  again,  Mr. 
Woolston,  if  you  love  a  fellow-creatur',  and  an  old  ship 
mate  in  distress." 

Such  was  the  singular  dialogue  which  succeeded  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  269 

unexpected  hail.  It  completely  put  a  new  face  on  things 
at  the  Reef.  As  Brown  was  a  valuable  man,  and  one 
whose  word  he  had  always  relied  on,  Mark  did  not  hesi 
tate,  but  told  him  the  direction  to  the  bridge,  where  he  and 
Betts  met  him  and  Wattles,  after  each  of  the  parties  had 
believed  the  others  to  be  dead  now  fully  three  years ! 

The  two  recovered  seamen  of  the  Rancocus  were  alone, 
having  acted  in  perfect  good  faith  with  their  former  officer, 
who  led  them  to  the  awning,  gave  them  some  refreshment, 
and  heard  their  story.  The  account  given  by  Jones,  for 
the  first  time  that  very  day,  turned  out  to  be  essentially 
true.  When  the  launch  was  swept  away  from  the  ship,  it 
drove  down  to  leeward,  passing  at  no  great  distance  from 
the  crater,  of  which  the  men  in  her  got  a  glimpse,  without 
being  able  to  reach  it.  The  attention  of  Hillson  was  mainly 
given  to  keeping  the  boat  from  filling  or  capsizing ;  and 
this  furnished  abundance  of  occupation.  The  launch  got 
into  one  of  the  channels,  and  by  observing  the  direction, 
which  was  nearly  east  and  west,  it  succeeded  in  passing 
through  all  the  dangers,  coming  out  to  leeward  of  the 
shoals.  As  everybody  believed  that  the  ship  was  hopelessly 
lost,  no  effort  was  made  to  get  back  to  the  spot  where  she 
had  been  left.  No  island  appearing,  Hillson  determined 
to  run  off  to  the  westward,  trusting  to  fall  in  with  land 
of  some  sort  or  other.  The  provisions  and  water  were 
soon  consumed,  and  then  came  the  horrors  usual  to  such 
scenes  at  sea.  Hillson  was  one  of  the  first  that  perished, 
his  previous  excesses  unfitting  him  to  endure  privation. 
But  seven  survived  when  the  launch  reached  an  island  in 
Waally's  part  of  the  group,  so  often  mentioned.  There 
they  fell  into  the  hands  of  that  turbulent  and  warlike  chief. 
Waally  made  the  seamen  his  slaves,  treating  them  reasona 
bly  well,  but  exacting  of  them  the  closest  attention  to  his 
interests.  Brown,  as  a  ship-carpenter,  soon  became  a  fa 
vourite,  and  was  employed  in  fashioning  craft  that  it  was 
thought  might  be  useful  in  carrying  out  the  ambitious  pro* 
jects  of  his  master.  The  men  were  kept  on  a  small  island, 
and  were  watched  like  any  other  treasure,  having  no  op 
portunity  to  communicate  with  any  of  those  whites  who 
appeared  in  other  parts  of  the  group.  Thus,  while  Betts 
passed  two  months  with  Ooroony,  and  Heaton  and  his 
23* 


270  THE   CRATER; 

party  nearly  as  much  more  time,  these  sailors,  who  heard 
of  such  visitors,  could  never  get  access  to  them.  This 
was  partly  owing  to  the  hostilities  between  the  two  chiefs 
— Ooroony  being  then  in  the  ascendant — and  partly  owing 
to  the  special  projects  of  Waally,  who,  by  keeping  his  pri 
soners  busily  employed  on  his  fleet,  looked  forward  to  the 
success  which,  in  fact,  crowned  his  efforts  against  his 
rival. 

At  length  Waally  undertook  the  expedition  which  had 
appeared  in  such  force  beneath  the  cliffs  of  the  Peak.  By 
this  time,  Brown  had  become  so  great  a  favourite,  that  he 
was  permitted  to  accompany  the  chief;  and  Wattles  was 
brought  along  as  a  companion  for  his  shipmate.  The  re 
maining  five  were  left  behind,  to  complete  a  craft  on  which 
they  had  now  been  long  employed,  and  which  was  intended 
to  be  the  invincible  war-canoe  of  those  regions.  Brown 
and  Wattles  had  been  in  Waally's  own  canoe  when  the  ter 
rible  echoes  so  much  alarmed  the  uninstructed  beings  who 
heard  it.  They  described  them  as  much  the  most  im 
posing  echoes  they  had  ever  heard ;  nor  did  they,  at  first, 
know  what  to  make  of  them,  themselves.  It  was  only  on 
reflection,  and  after  the  retreat  to  Rancocus  Island,  that 
Brown,  by  reasoning  on  the  subject,  came  to  the  conclu 
sion  that  the  whites,  who  were  supposed  to  be  in  possession 
of  the  place,  had  fired  a  gun,  which  had  produced  the 
astounding  uproar  that  had  rattled  so  far  along  the  cliff. 
As  all  Brown's  sympathies  were  with  the  unknown  people 
of  his  own  colour,  he  kept  his  conjectures  to  himself,  and 
managed  to  lead  Waally  in  a  different  direction,  by  cer 
tain  conclusions  of  his  own  touching  the  situation  of  the 
reef  where  the  Rancocus  had  been  lost. 

Bill  Brown  was  an  intelligent  man  for  his  station  and 
pursuits.  He  knew  the  courses  steered  by  the  launch,  and 
had  some  tolerably  accurate  notions  of  the  distances  run. 
According  to  his  calculations,  that  reef  could  not  be  very 
far  to  the  northward  of  the  Peak,  and,  by  ascending  the 
iTDurrtaais  on  Rancocus  Island,  he  either  saw,  or  fancied 
he  s*  tv,  the  looming  of  land  in  that  part  of  the  ocean.  It 
then  occurred  to  Brown  that  portions  of  the  wreck  might 
still  be  found  on  the  reef,  and  become  the  means  of  effect 
ing  his  escape  from  the  hands  of  his  tyrants.  Waallj 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  271 

listened  to  his  statements  and  conjectures  with  the  utmost 
attention,  and  the  whole  fleet  put  to  sea  the  very  next  day, 
in  quest  of  this  treasure.  After  paddling  to  windward 
again,  until  the  Peak  was  fairly  in  sight,  Brown  steered  to 
the  north-east,  a  course  that  brought  him  out,  after  twenty- 
four  hours  of  toil,  under  the  lee  of  the  group  of  the  reef. 
This  discovery  of  itself,  filled  Waally  with  exultation  and 
pride.  Here  were  no  cliffs  to  scale,  no  mysterious  moun 
tain  to  appal,  nor  any  visible  obstacle  to  oppose  his  con 
quests.  It  is  true,  that  the  newly-discovered  territory  did 
not  appear  to  be  of  much  value,  little  beside  naked  rock, 
or  broad  fields  of  mud  and  sea-weed  intermingled,  reward 
ing  their  first  researches.  But  better  things  were  hoped  for. 
It  was  something  to  men  whose  former  domains  were  so 
much  circumscribed  and  girded  by  the  ocean,  to  find  even 
a  foundation  for  a  new  empire.  Brown  was  now  consulted 
as  to  every  step  to  be  taken,  and  his  advice  was  implicitly 
followed.  Columbus  was  scarcely  a  greater  man,  for  the 
time  being,  at  the  court  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  than 
Bill  Brown  immediately  became  at  the  court  of  Waally. 
His  words  were  received  as  prophecies,  his  opinions  as 
oracles. 

Honest  Bill,  who  anticipated  no  more  from  his  discove 
ries  than  the  acquisition  of  certain  portions  of  wood,  iron, 
and  copper,  with,  perhaps,  the  addition  of  a  little  rigging, 
certain  sails  and  an  anchor  or  two,  acted,  at  first,  for  the 
best  interests  of  his  master.  He  led  the  fleet  along  the 
margin  of  the  group  until  a  convenient  harbour  was  found. 
Into  this  all  the  canoes  entered,  and  a  sandy  beach  sup 
plying  fresh  water  in  abundance  having  been  found,  an  en 
campment  was  made  for  the  night.  Several  hours  of  day 
light  remaining,  however,  when  these  great  preliminary 
steps  had  been  taken,  Brown  proposed  to  Waally  an  ex 
ploring  expedition  in  a  couple  of  the  handiest  of  the  canoes. 
The  people  thus  employed  were  those  who  had  given  the 
alarm  to  the  governor.  On  that  occasion,  not  only  was  the 
boat  seen,  but  the  explorers  were  near  enough  to  the  reef, 
to  discover  not  only  the  crater,  but  the  spars  of  the  ship. 
Here,  then,  was  a  discovery  scarcely  less  important  than 
that  of  the  group  itself!  After  reasoning  on  the  facts, 
Waally  came  to  the  conclusion  that  these,  after  all,  were 


272  THE  CRATER; 

the  territories  that  Heaton  and  his  party  had  eome  to  seek, 
and  that  here  he  should  find  those  cows  which  he  had  once 
seen,  and  which  he  coveted  more  than  any  other  riches  on 
earth.  Ooroony  had  been  weak  enough  to  allow  strangers 
in  possession  of  things  so  valuable,  to  pass  through  his 
islands;  but  het  Waally,  was  not  the  man  to  imitate  this 
folly.  8Brown,  too,  began  to  think  that  the  white  men 
sought  were  to  be  found  here.  That  whites  were  in  the 
group  was  plain  enough  by  the  ship,  and  he  supposed  they 
might  be  fishing  for  the  pearl-oyster,  or  gathering  beche-le- 
mar  for  the  Canton  market.  It  was  just  possible  that  a 
colony  had  established  itself  in  this  unfrequented  place,  and 
that  the  party  of  which  he  had  heard  so  much,  had  come 
hither  with  their  stores  and  herds.  Not  the  smallest  suspi 
cion  at  first  crossed  his  mind  that  he  there  beheld  the  spars 
of  the  Rancocus ;  but,  it  was  enough  for  him  and  Wattles 
that  Christian  men  were  there,  and  that,  in  all  probability, 
they  were  men  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race.  No  sooner  was 
it  ascertained  that  the  explorers  were  in  a  false  channel, 
and  that  it  would  not  be  in  their  power  to  penetrate  farther 
in  their  canoes,  than  our  two  seamen  determined  to  run, 
and  attach  themselves  to  the  strangers.  They  naturally 
thought  that  they  should  find  a  vessel  armed  and  manned, 
and  ready  to  stand  out  to  sea  as  soon  as  her  officers  were 
apprized  of  the  danger  that  threatened  them,  and  did  not 
hesitate  about  joining  their  fortune  with  hers,  in  preference 
to  remaining  with  Waally  any  longer.  Freedom  possesses 
a  charm  for  which  no  other  advantage  can  compensate,  and 
those  two  old  sea-dogs,  who  had  worked  like  horses  all  their 
lives,  in  their  original  calling,  preferred  returning  to  the 
ancient  drudgery  rather  than  live  with  Waally,  in  the  rude 
abundance  of  savage  chiefs.  The  escape  was  easily  enough 
made,  as  soon  as  it  was  dark,  Brown  and  Wattles  being  on 
shore  most  of  the  time,  under  the  pretence  that  it  was  ne 
cessary,  in  order  that  they  might  ascertain  the  character 
of  thef.e  unknown  colonists  by  signs  understood  best  by 
themselves. 

Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  the  explanations  that  the  two 
recovered  seamen  made  to  their  former  officer.  In  return, 
the  governor  as  briefly  related  to  them  the  manner  in  which 
the  ship  had  been  saved,  and  the  history  of  the  colony  down 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  273 

to  that  moment.  When  both  tales  had  been  told,  a  consul 
tation  on  the  subject  of  future  proceedings  took  place,  quite 
as  a  matter  of  course.  Brown,  and  his  companion,  though 
delighted  to  meet  their  old  ship-mates,  were  greatly  disap 
pointed  in  not  finding  a  sea-going  vessel  ready  to  receive 
them.  They  did  not  scruple  to  say  that  had  they  known 
the  actual  state  of  things  on  the  Reef,  they  would  not  have 
left  the  savages,  but  trusted  to  being  of  more  service  even 
to  their  natural  friends,  by  continuing  with  Waally,  in  their 
former  relation,  than  by  taking  the  step  they  had.  Re 
pentance,  or  regrets,  however,  came  too  late;  and  now 
they  were  fairly  in  for  it,  neither  expressed  any  other  de 
termination  than  to  stand  by  the  service  into  which  they 
had  just  entered,  honestly,  if  not  quite  as  gladly  as  they 
had  anticipated. 

The  governor  and  Betts  both  saw  that  Brown  and  Wat 
tles  entertained  a  high  respect  for  the  military  prowess  of 
the  Indian  chief.     They  pronounced  him  to  be  not  only  a 
bold,  but  an  adroit  warrior ;  one,  full  of  resources  and  in 
genuity,  when   his  means  were  taken  into  the  account. 
The  number  of  men  with  him,  however,  Brown  assured 
Mark,  was  less  than  nine  hundred,  instead  of  exceeding  a 
thousand,  as  had  been  supposed  from  the  count  made  on 
the  cliffs.     As  it  now  was  explained,  a  great  many  women 
were  in  the  canoes.    Waally,  moreover,  was  not  altogether 
without  fire-arms.     He  was  master  of  a  dozen  old,  imper 
fect  muskets,  and  what  was  more,  he  had  a  four-pound 
fun.    Ammunition,  however,  was  very  scarce,  and  of  shot 
jr  his  gun  he  had  but  three.    Each  of  these  shot  had  been 
fired  several  times,  in  his  wars  with  Ooroony,  and  days 
had  been  spent  in  hunting  them  up,  after  they  had  done 
their  work,  and  of  replacing  them  in  the  chief's  magazine. 
Brown  could  not  say  that  they  had  done  much  mischief, 
having,  in  every  instance,  being  fired  at  long  distances, 
and  with  a  very  uncertain  aim.     The  business  of  sighting 
guns  was  not  very  well  understood  by  the  great  mass  of 
Christians,  half  a  century  since ;  and  it  is  not  at  all  sur 
prising  that  savages  should  know  little  or  nothing  about  it. 
Waally's  gunners,  according  to  Brown's  account  of  the 
!natter,  could  never  be  made  to  understand  that  the  bore 
of  a  gun  was  not  exactly  parallel  to  its  exterior  surface, 


274  THE  CRATER; 

and  they  invariably  aimed  too  high,  by  sighting  along  the 
upper  side  of  the  piece.  This  same  fault  is  very  common 
with  the  inexperienced  in  using  a  musket;  for,  anxious  to 
get  a  sight  of  the  end  of  their  piece,  they  usually  stick  it 
up  into  the  air  and  overshoot  their  object.  It  was  the 
opinion  of  Brown,  on  the  whole,  that  little  was  to  be  ap 
prehended  from  Waally's  fire-arms.  The  spear  and  club 
were  the  weapons  to  be  dreaded;  and  with  these  the 
islanders  were  said  to  be  very  expert.  But  the  disparity 
in  numbers  was  the  main  ground  of  apprehension. 

When  Brown  was  told  how  near  the  schooner  was  to 
being  launched,  he  earnestly  begged  the  governor  to  let 
him  and  Bigelow  go  to  work  and  put  her  into  the  water, 
immediately.  Everything  necessary  to  a  cruise  was  on 
board  her,  even  to  her  provisions  and  water,  the  arrange 
ments  having  been  made  to  launch  her  with  her  sails  bent; 
and,  once  in  the  water,  Bill  thought  she  would  prove  of 
the  last  importance  to  the  defence.  If  the  worst  came  to 
the  worst,  all  hands  could  get  on  board  her,  and  by  stand 
ing  through  some  of  the  channels  that  were  clear  of  canoes, 
escape  into  the  open  water.  Once  there,  Waally  could  do 
nothing  with  them,  and  they  might  be  governed  by  cir 
cumstances. 

Woolston  viewed  things  a  little  differently.  He  loved 
the  Reef;  it  had  become  dear  to  him  by  association  and 
history,  and  he  did  not  relish  the  thought  of  abandoning  it. 
There  was  too  much  property  at  risk,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
ship,  which  would  doubtless  be  burned  for  its  metals,  should 
the  Indians  get  possession,  even  for  a  day.  In  that  ship 
he  had  sailed ;  in  that  ship  he  had  been  married ;  in  that 
ship  his  daughter  had  been  born ;  and  in  that  ship  Bridget 
loved  still  to  dwell,  even  more  than  she  affected  all  the  glo 
ries  of  the  Eden  of  the  Peak.  That  ship  was  not  to  be 
given  up  to  savages  without  a  struggle  Nor  did  Mark 
believe  anything  would  be  gained  by  depriving  the  men  of 
their  r°,»t  during  the  accustomed  hours.  Early  in  the 
morning,  with  the  light  itself,  he  did  intend  to  have  Bigelow 
under  the  schooner's  bottom ;  but  he  saw  no  occasion  for 
his  working  in  the  dark.  Launching  was  a  delicate  busi 
ness,  and  some-  accident  might  happen  in  the  obscurity. 
Aftei  talking  the  matter  over,  therefore,  all  hands  retired 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  275 

to  rest,  leaving  one  woman  at  the  crater,  and  one  on  board 
the  ship,  on  the  look-out ;  women  being  preferred  to  men, 
on  this  occasion,  in  order  that  the  latter  might  reserve  their 
strength  for  the  coming  struggle. 

At  the  appointed  hour  next  morning,  every  one  on  the 
Reef  was  astir  at  the  first  peep  of  day.  No  disturbance 
had  occurred  in  the  night,  and,  what  is  perhaps  a  little 
remarkable,  the  female  sentinels  had  not  given  any  false 
alarm.  As  soon  as  a  look  from  the  Summit  gave  the  go 
vernor  reason  to  believe  that  Waally  was  not  very  near 
him,  he  ordered  preparations  to  be  made  for  the  launch  of 
the  Friend  Abraham  White.  A  couple  of  hours'  work  was 
still  required  to  complete  this  desirable  task ;  and  every 
body  set  about  his  or  her  assigned  duty  with  activity  and 
zeal.  Some  of  the  women  prepared  the  breakfast;  others 
carried  ammunition  to  the  different  guns,  while  Betts  went 
round  and  loaded  them,  one  and  all ;  and  others,  again, 
picked  up  such  articles  of  value  as  had  been  overlooked  in 
the  haste  of  the  previous  evening,  carrying  them  either 
into  the  crater,  or  on  board  the  ship. 

On  examining  his  fortifications  by  daylight,  the  governor 
resolved  to  set  up  something  more  secure  in  the  way  of  a 
gate  for  the  crater.  He  also  called  off  two  or  three  of  the 
men  to  get  out  the  boarding-netting  of  the  ship,  which  was 
well  provided  in  that  respect ;  a  good  provision  having  been 
made,  by  way  of  keeping  the  Fejee  people  at  arms'  length. 
These  two  extraordinary  offices  delayed  the  work  on  the 
ways ;  and  when  the  whole  colony  went  to  breakfast,  which 
they  did  about  an  hour  after  sunrise,  the  schooner  was  not 
yet  in  the  water,  though  quite  ready  to  be  put  there.  Mark 
announced  that  there  was  no  occasion  to  be  in  a  hurry ; 
no  canoes  were  in  sight,  and  there  was  time  to  have  every 
thing  done  deliberately  and  in  order. 

This  security  came  very  near  proving  fatal  to  the  whole 
party.  Most  of  the  men  breakfasted  under  the  awning, 
which  wasp  near  their  work ;  while  the  women  took  that 
meal  in  their  respective  quarters.  Some  of  the  last  were 
in  the  crater,  and  some  in  the  ship.  It  will  be  remembered 
that  the  awning  was  erected  near  the  spring,  and  that  the 
spring  was  but  a  short  distance  from  the  bridge.  This 
bridge,  it  will  also  be  recollected,  connected  the  Reef  witb 


276  THE  CRATER; 

an  island  fhat  stretched  away  for  miles,  and  which  had 
formed  the  original  range  for  the  swine,  after  the  changes 
that  succeeded  the  eruption.  It  was  composed  of  merely 
two  long  ship's  planks,  the  passage  being  only  some  fifty  or 
sixty  feet  in  width. 

The  governor,  now,  seldom  ate  with  his  people.  He 
knew  enough  of  human  nature  to  understand  that  authority 
was  best  preserved  by  avoiding  familiarity.  Besides,  there 
is,  in  truth,  no  association  more  unpleasant  to  those  whose 
manners  have  been  cultivated,  than  that  of  the  table,  with 
the  rude  and  unrefined.  Bridget,  for  instance,  could 
hardly  be  expected  to  eat  with  the  wives  of  the  seamen ; 
and  Mark  naturally  wished  to  eat  with  his  own  family.  On 
that  occasion  he  had  taken  his  meal  in  the  cabin  of  the 
Rancocus,  as  usual,  and  had  come  down  to  the  awning  to 
see  that  the  hands  turned-to  as  soon  as  they  were  through 
with  their  own  breakfasts.  Just  as  he  was  about  to  issue 
the  necessary  order,  the  air  was  filled  with  frightful  yells, 
and  a  stream  of  savages  poured  out  of  an  opening  in  the 
rocks,  on  to  the  plain  of  the  "  hog  pasture,"  as  the  adjoin 
ing  field  was  called,  rushing  forward  in  a  body  towards  the 
crater.  They  had  crept  along  under  the  rocks  by  follow 
ing  a  channel,  and  now  broke  cover  within  two  hundred 
yards  of  the  point  they  intended  to  assail. 

The  governor  behaved  admirably  on  this  trying  occasion. 
He  issued  his  orders  clearly,  calmly,  and  promptly.  Call 
ing  on  Bigelow  and  Jones  by  name,  he  ordered  them  to 
withdraw  the  bridge,  which  could  easily  be  done  by  haul 
ing  over  the  planks  by  means  of  wheels  that  had  long  been 
fitted  for  that  purpose.  The  bridge  withdrawn,  the  chan 
nel,  or  harbour,  answered  all  the  purposes  of  a  ditch ; 
though  the  South  Sea  islanders  would  think  but  little  of 
swimming  across  it.  Of  course,  Waally's  men  knew  no 
thing  of  this  bridge,  nor  did  they  know  of  the  existence  of 
the  basin  between  them  and  their  prey.  They  rushed  di 
rectly  towards  the  ship-yard,  and  loud  were  their  yells  of 
disappointment  when  they  found  a  broad  reach  of  water 
still  separating  them  from  the  whites.  Naturally  they 
looked  for  the  point  of  connection ;  but,  by  this  time,  the 
planks  were  wheeled  in,  and  the  communication  was  sev 
ered.  At  this  instant,  W  a  ally  had  all  his  muskets  dis 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  277 

charged,  and  the  gun  fired  from  the  catamaran,  on  which 
it  was  mounted.  No  one  was  injured  by  this  volley,  but  a 
famous  noise  was  made ;  and  noise  passed  for  a  good  deal 
in  the  warfare  of  that  day  and  region. 

It  was  now  the  turn  of  the  colonists.  At  the  first  alarm 
everybody  rushed  to  arms,  and  every  post  was  manned,  or 
womaned,  in  a  minute.  On  the  poop  of  the  ship  was 
planted  one  of  the  cannon,  loaded  with  grape,  and  pointed 
so  as  to  sweep  the  strait  of  the  bridge.  It  is  true,  the  dis 
tance  was  fully  a  mile,  but  Betts  had  elevated  the  gun  with 
a  view  to  its  sending  its  missiles  as  far  as  was  necessary. 
The  other  carronades  on  the  Summit  were  pointed  so  as 
to  sweep  the  portion  of  the  hog  pasture  that  was  nearest, 
and  which  was  now  swarming  with  enemies.  Waally, 
himself,  was  in  front,  and  was  evidently  selecting  a  party 
that  was  to  swim  for  the  sandy  beach,  a  sort  of  forlorn 
hope.  No  time  was  to  be  lost.  Juno,  a  perfect  heroine 
in  her  way,  stood  by  the  gun  on  the  poop,  while  Dido  was 
at  those  on  the  Summit,  each  brandishing,  or  blowing,  a 
lighted  match.  The  governor  made  the  preconcerted  sig 
nal  to  the  last,  and  she  applied  the  match.  Away  went 
the  grape,  rattling  along  the  surface  of  the  opposite  rocks, 
and  damaging  at  least  a  dozen  of  Waally's  men.  Three 
were  killed  outright,  and  the  wounds  of  the  rest  were  very 
serious.  A  yell  followed,  and  a  young  chief  rushed  to 
wards  the  strait,  with  frantic  cries,  as  if  bent  on  leaping 
across  the  chasm.  He  was  followed  by  a  hundred  war 
riors.  Mark  now  made  the  signal  to  Juno.  Not  a  mo 
ment  was  lost  by  the  undaunted  girl,  who  touched  off  her 
gun  in  the  very  nick  of  time.  Down  came  the  grape,  hiss 
ing  along  the  Reef;  and,  rebounding  from  its  surface, 
away  it  leaped  across  the  strait,  flying  through  the  thickest 
of  the  assailants.  A  dozen  more  suffered  by  that  discharge. 
Waally  now  saw  that  a  crisis  was  reached,  and  his  efforts 
to  recover  the  ground  lost  were  worthy  of  his  reputation. 
Calling  to  the  swimmers,  he  succeeded  in  getting  them 
down  into  the  water  in  scores. 

The  governor  had  ordered  those  near  him  to  their  sta 
tions.  This  took  Jones  and  Bigelow  on  board  the  Abra 
ham,  where  two  carronades  were  pointed  through  the  stern 
ports,  forming  a  battery  to  rake  the  hog  pasture,  which  it 


278  THE   CRATER; 

was  foreseen  must  be  the  field  of  battle  if  the  enemy  came 
by  land,  as  it  was  the  only  island  that  came  near  enough 
to  the  Reef  to  be  used  in  that  way.  As  for  Mark  him 
self,  accompanied  by  Brown  and  Wattles,  all  well  armed, 
he  held  his  party  in  reserve,  as  a  corps  to  be  moved  wher 
ever  it  might  be  most  needed.  At  that  all-important  mo 
ment  a  happy  idea  occurred  to  the  young  governor.  The 
schooner  was  all  ready  for  launching.  The  reserve  were 
under  her  bottom,  intending  to  make  a  stand  behind  the 
covers  of  the  yard,  when  Mark  found  himself  at  one  of  the 
spur-shores,  just  as  Brown,  armed  to  the  teeth,  came  up 
to  the  other. 

"  Lay  aside  your  arms,"  cried  the  governor,  "  and  knock 
away  your  spur-shore,  Bill ! — Down  with  it,  while  I  knock 
this  away ! — Look  out  on  deck,  for  we  are  about  to  launch 
you !" 

These  words  were  just  uttered,  when  the  schooner  began 
to  move.  All  the  colonists  now  cheered,  and  away  the 
Abraham  went,  plunging  like  a  battering-ram  into  the 
midst  of  the  swimmers.  While  dipping  deepest,  Bigelow 
and  Jones  fired  both  their  carronades,  the  shot  of  which 
threw  the  whole  basin  into  foam.  This  combination  of 
the  means  of  assault  was  too  much  for  savages  to  resist. 
Waally  was  instantly  routed.  His  main  body  retreated  into 
the  coves  of  the  channel,  where  their  canoes  lay,  while  the 
swimmers  and  stragglers  got  out  of  harm's  way,  in  the  best 
manner  they  could. 

Not  a  moment  was  to  be  lost.  The  Abraham  was  brought 
up  by  a  hawser,  as  is  usual,  and  was  immediately  boarded 
by  Mark,  Bigelow  and  Wattles.  This  gave  her  a  crew  of 
five  men,  who  were  every  way  equal  to  handling  her.  Betts 
was  left  in  command  of  the  Reef,  with  the  remainder  of 
the  forces.  To  make  sail  required  but  two  minutes,  and 
Mark  was  soon  under  way,  rounding  Loam  Island,  or  what 
had  once  been  Loam  Island,  for  it  was  now  connected 
with  the  hog  pasture,  in  order  to  get  into  the  reach  where 
Waally  had  his  forces.  This  reach  was  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  wide,  and  gave  room  for  manosuvring.  Although  the 
schooner  bore  down  to  the  assault  with  a  very  determined 
air,  it  was  by  no  means  Mark's  cue  to  come  to  close  quar 
ters.  Being  well  to  windward,  with  plenty  of  room,  he  kept 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  279 

the  Abraham  tacking,  yawing,  waring,  and  executing  other 
of  the  devices  of  nautical  delay,  whilst  his  men  loaded  and 
fired  her  guns  as  fast  as  they  could.  There  were  more 
noise  and  smoke,  than  there  was  bloodshed,  as  commonly 
happens  on  such  occasions ;  but  these  sufficed  to  secure  the 
victory.  The  savages  were  soon  in  a  real  panic,  and  no 
authority  of  Waally's  could  check  their  flight.  Away  they 
paddled  to  leeward,  straining  every  nerve  to  get  away  from 
pursuers,  whom  they  supposed  to  be  murderously  bent  on 
killing  them  to  a  man.  A  more  unequivocal  flight  never 
occurred  in  war. 

Although  the  governor  was  much  in  earnest,  he  was  not 
half  as  bloodthirsty  as  his  fleeing  enemies  imagined.  Every 
dictate  of  prudence  told  him  not  to  close  with  the  canoes 
until  he  had  plenty  of  sea-room.  The  course  they  were 
steering  would  take  them  all  out  of  the  group,  into  the 
open  water,  in  the  course  of  three  or  four  hours,  and  he 
determined  to  follow  at  a  convenient  distance,  just  hasten 
ing  the  flight  by  occasional  hints  from  his  guns.  In  this 
manner,  the  people  of  the  Abraham  had  much  the  easiest 
time  of  it,  for  they  did  little  besides  sail,  while  the  savages 
had  to  use  all  their  paddles  to  keep  out  of  the  schooner's 
way ;  they  sailed,  also,  but  their  speed  under  their  cocoa- 
nut  canvas  was  not  sufficient  to  keep  clear  of  the  Friend 
Abraham  White,  which  proved  to  be  a  very  fast  vessel,  as 
well  as  one  easily  handled. 

At  length,  Waally  found  his  fleet  in  the  open  ocean, 
where  he  trusted  the  chase  would  end.  But  he  had  greatly 
mistaken  the  course  of  events,  in  applying  that  '  flattering 
unction.'  It  was  now  that  the  governor  commenced  the 
chase  in  good  earnest,  actually  running  down  three  of  the 
canoes,  and  making  prisoners  of  one  of  the  crews.  In 
this  canoe  was  a  young  warrior,  whom  Bill  Brown  and 
Wattles  at  once  recognised  as  a  favourite  son  of  the  chief. 
Here  was  a  most  important  conquest,  and,  Mark  turned  it  to 
account.  He  selected  a  proper  agent  from  among  the  cap 
tives,  and  sent  him  with  a  palm-branch  to  Waally  himself, 
with  proposals  for  an  exchange.  There  was  no  difficulty 
in  communicating,  since  Brown  and  Wattles  both  spoke 
the  language  of  the  natives  with  great  fluency.  Three 
fears  of  captivity  had,  at  least,  taught  them  that  much. 


280  THE  CRATER; 

A  good  deal  of  time  was  wasted  before  Waally  could  be 
brought  to  confide  in  the  honour  of  his  enemies.  At  last, 
love  for  his  offspring  brought  him,  unarmed,  alongside  of 
the  schooner,  and  the  governor  met  this  formidable  chief, 
face  to  face.  He  found  the  latter  a  wily  and  intelligent 
savage.  Nevertheless,  he  had  not  the  art  to  conceal  his 
strong  affection  for  his  son,  and  on  that  passion  did  Mark 
Woolston  play.  Waally  offered  canoes,  robes  of  feathers, 
whales'  teeth,  and  every  thing  that  was  most  esteemed 
among  his  own  people,  as  a  ransom  for  the  boy.  But  this 
was  not  the  exchange  the  governor  desired  to  make.  He 
offered  to  restore  the  son  to  the  arms  of  his  father  as  soon 
<js  the  five  seamen  who  were  still  prisoners  on  his  citadel 
island  should  be  brought  alongside  of  the  schooner.  If 
these  terms  were  rejected,  the  lad  must  take  the  fate  of 
war. 

Great  was  the  struggle  in  the  bosom  of  Waally,  between 
natural  affection,  and  the  desire  to  retain  his  captives. 
After  two  hours  of  subterfuges,  artifices,  and  tricks,  the 
former  prevailed,  and  a  treaty  was  made.  Agreeably  to  its 
conditions,  the  schooner  was  to  pilot  the  fleet  of  canoes  to 
Betto's  group,  which  could  easily  be  done,  as  Mark  knew 
not  only  its  bearings,  but  its  latitude  and  longitude.  As 
soon  as  this  was  effected,  Waally  engaged  to  send  a  mes 
senger  for  the  seamen,  and  to  remain  himself  on  board  the 
Abraham  until  the  exchange  was  completed.  The  chief 
wished  to  attach  terms,  by  which  the  colonists  were  to  aid 
him  in  more  effectually  putting  down  Ooroony,  who  was 
checked  rather  than  conquered,  but  Mark  refused  to  listen 
to  any  such  proposition.  He  was  more  disposed  to  aid, 
than  to  overcome  the  kind  hearted  Ooroony,  and  made  up 
his  mind  to  have  an  interview  with  him  before  he  returned 
from  the  intended  voyage. 

Some  delay  would  have  occurred,  to  enable  Mark  to  let 
Bridget  know  of  his  intended  absence,  had  it  not  been  for 
the  solicitude  of  Belts.  Finding  the  sails  of  the  schooner 
had  gone  out  of  sight  to  leeward,  Bob  manned  the  Nesha- 
mony,  and  followed  as  a  support.  In  the  event  of  a  wreck, 
for  instance,  his  presence  might  have  been  of  the  last  im 
portance.  He  got  alongside  of  the  Abraham  just  as  the 
treaty  was  concluded,  and  was  in  time  to  carry  back  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  281 

news  to  the  crater,  where  he  might  expect  still  to  arrive 
that  evening.  With  this  arrangement,  therefore,  the  par 
ties  separated,  Belts  beating  back,  through  the  channels 
of  the  Reef,  and  the  governor  leading  off  to  the  northward 
and  westward,  under  short  canvas ;  all  of  Waally's  canoes, 
catamarans,  &>c.  following  about  a  mile  astern  of  him. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

«  Nay,  shrink  not  from  the  word  <  farewell !' 
As  if  'twere  friendship's  final  knell ; 
Such  fears  may  prove  but  vain  : 
So  changeful  is  life's  fleeting  day, 
Whene'er  we  sever — hope  may  say, 
We  part — to  meet  again." 

BEHBTARD  BARTOH. 

THE  Abraham  went  under  short  canvas,  and  she  was 
just  three  days,  running  dead  before  the  wind,  ere  she 
came  in  sight  of  Waally's  islands.  Heaving-to  to-windward 
of  the  group,  the  canoes  all  passed  into  their  respective 
h'/bours,  leaving  the  schooner  in  the  offing,  with  the  hos 
tages  on  board,  waiting  for  the  fulfilment  of  the  treaty. 
The  next  day,  Waally  himself  re-appeared,  bringing  with 
him  Dickinson,  Harris,  Johnson,  Edwards  and  Bright,  the 
five  seamen  of  the-Rancocus  that  had  so  long  been  cap 
tives  in  his  hands.  It  went  hard  with  that  savage  chief  to 
relinquish  these  men,  but  he  loved  his  son  even  more  than 
he  loved  power.  As  for  the  men  themselves,  language 
cannot  portray  their  delight.  They  were  not  only  rejoiced 
to  be  released,  but  their  satisfaction  was  heightened  on  rind 
ing  into  whose  hands  they  had  fallen.  These  men  had  all 
kept  themselves  free  from  wives,  and  returned  to  their  co 
lour,  that  word  being  now  more  appropriate  than  colours, 
or  ensign,  unshackled  by  any  embarrassing  engagements. 
They  at  once  made  the  Abraham  a  power  in  that  part  of 
the  world.  With  twelve  able  seamen,  all  strong,  athletic 
and  healthy  men,  to  handle  his  craft,  and  with  his  two 
24* 


282  THE   CRATER; 

carronades  and  a  long  six,  the  governor  felt  as  if  he  might 
interfere  with  the  political  relations  of  the  adjoining  states 
with  every  prospect  of  being  heard.  Waally  was,  pro 
bably,  of  the  same  opinion,  for  he  made  a  great  effort  to 
extend  the  treaty  so  far  as  to  overturn  Ooroony  altogether, 
and  thus  secure  to  their  two  selves  the  control  of  all  that 
region.  Woolston  inquired  of  Waally,  in  what  he  should 
be  benefited  by  such  a  policy?  when  the  wily  savage  told 
him,  with  the  gravest  face  imaginable,  that  he,  Mark, 
might  retain,  in  addition  to  his  territories  at  the  Reef, 
Rancocus  Island !  The  governor  thanked  his  fellow  po 
tentate  for  this  hint,  and  now  took  occasion  to  assure  him 
that,  in  future,  each  and  all  of  Waally's  canoes  must  keep 
away  from  Rancocus  Island  altogether ;  that  island  be 
longed  to  him,  and  if  any  more  expeditions  visited  it,  the 
call  should  be  returned  at  Waally's  habitations.  This  an 
swer  brought  on  an  angry  discussion,  in  which  Waally, 
once  or  twice,  forgot  himself  a  little ;  and  when  he  took 
his  leave,  it  was  not  in  the  best  humour  possible. 

Mark  now  deliberated  on  the  state  of  things  around  him. 
Jones  knew  Ooroony  well,  having  been  living  in  his  terri 
tories  until  they  were  overrun  by  his  powerful  enemy,  and 
the  governor  sent  him  to  find  that  chief,  using  a  captured 
canoe,  of  which  they  had  kept  two  or  three  alongside  of 
the  schooner  for  the  purpose.  Jones,  who  was  a  sworn 
friend  of  the  unfortunate  chief,  went  as  negotiator.  Care 
was  taken  to  land  at  the  right  place,  under  cover  of  the 
Abraham's  guns,  and  in  six  hours  Mark  had  the  real  grati 
fication  of  taking  Ooroony,  good,  honest,  upright  Ooroony, 
by  the  hand,  on  the  quarter-deck  of  his  own  vessel.  Much 
as  the  chief  had  suffered  and  lost,  within  the  last  two 
years,  a  gleam  of  returning  happiness  shone  on  him  when 
he  placed  his  foot  on  the  deck  of  the  schooner.  His  re 
ception  by  the  governor  was  honourable  and  even  touch 
ing.  Mark  thanked  him  for  his  kindness  to  his  wife,  to 
his  sister,  to  Heaton,  and  to  his  friend  B.ob.  In  point  of 
fact,  without  this  kindness,  he,  Woolston,  might  then  have 
been  a  solitary  hermit,  without  the  means  of  getting  ac 
cess  to  any  of  his  fellow-creatures,  and  doomed  to  remain 
in  that  condition  all  his  days.  The  obligation  was  now 
frankly  admitted,  arid  Ooroony  shed  tears  of  joy  when  he 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  283 

thus  found  that  his  good  deeds  were  remembered  and  ap 
preciated. 

It  has  long  been  a  question  with  moralists,  whether  or 
not,  good  and  evil  bring  their  rewards  and  punishments  in 
this  state  of  being.  While  it  might  be  dangerous  to  infer 
the  affirmative  of  this  mooted  point,  as  it  would  be  cutting 
off  the  future  and  its  consequences  from  those  whose  real 
hopes  and  fears  ought  to  be  mainly  concentrated  in  the  life 
that  is  to  come,  it  would  seem  to  be  presuming  to  suppose 
that  principles  like  these  ever  can  be  nugatory  in  the  con 
trol  even  of  our  daily  concerns. 

If  it  be  true  that  God  "  visits  the  sins  of  the  fathers  upon 
the  children  even  to  the  third  and  fourth  generations  of 
them  that  hate  him,"  and  that  the  seed  of  the  righteous 
man  is  never  seen  begging  his  bread,  there  is  much  reason 
to  believe  that  a  portion  of  our  transgressions  is  to  meet 
with  its  punishment  here  on  earth.  We  think  nothing  can 
be  more  apparent  than  the  fact  that,  in  the  light  of  mere 
worldly  expediency,  an  upright  and  high-principled  course 
leads  to  more  happiness  than  one  that  is  the  reverse ;  and 
if  "  honesty  is  the  best  policy,"  after  all  the  shifts  and  ex 
pedients  of  cupidity,  so  does  virtue  lead  most  unerringly 
to  happiness  here,  as  it  opens  up  the  way  to  happiness 
hereafter. 

All  the  men  of  the  Abraham  had  heard  of  Ooroony,  and 
of  his  benevolent  qualities.  It  was  his  goodness,  indeed, 
that  had  been  the  cause  of  his  downfall ;  for  had  he  punish 
ed  Waally  as  he  deserved  to  be,  when  the  power  was  in  his 
hands,  that  turbulent  chief,  who  commenced  life  as  his 
lawful  tributary,  would  never  have  gained  a  point  where 
he  was  so  near  becoming  his  master.  Every  man  on  board 
now  pressed  around  the  good  old  chief,  who  heard  on  all 
sides  of  him  assurances  of  respect  and  attachment,  with 
pledges  of  assistance.  When  this  touching  scene  was  over, 
Mark  held  a  council  on  the  quarter-deck,  in  which  the 
whole  matter  of  the  political  condition  of  the  group  was 
discussed,  and  the  wants  and  dangers  of  Ooroony  laid 
bare. 

As  commonly  happens  everywhere,  civilized  nations  and 
popular  governments  forming  no  exceptions  to  the  rule, 
the  ascendency  of  evil  in  this  cluster  of  remote  and  savage 


284  THE   CRATER; 

islands  was  owing  altogether  to  the  activity  and  audacity 
of  a  few  wicked  men,  rather  than  to  the  inclination  of  the 
mass.  The  people  greatly  preferred  the  mild  sway  of  their 
lawful  chief,  to  the  violence  and  exactions  of  the  turbulent 
warrior  who  had  worked  his  way  into  the  ascendant ;  and, 
if  a  portion  of  the  population  had,  unwittingly,  aided  the 
latter  in  his  designs,  under  the  momentary  impulses  of  a 
love  of  change,  they  now  fully  repented  of  their  mistake, 
and  would  gladly  see  the  old  condition  of  things  restored. 
There  was  one  island,  in  particular,  which  might  be  con 
sidered  as  the  seat  of  power  in  the  entire  group.  Ooroony 
had  been  born  on  it,  and  it  had  long  been  the  residence 
of  his  family ;  but  Waally  succeeded  in  driving  him  off  of 
it,  and  of  intimidating  its  people,  who,  in  secret,  pined  for 
the  return  of  their  ancient  rulers.  If  this  island  could  be 
again  put  in  his  possession,  it  would,  itself,  give  the  good 
chief  such  an  accession  of  power,  as  would  place  him,  at 
once,  on  a  level  with  his  competitor,  and  bring  the  war 
back  to  a  struggle  on  equal  terms.  Could  this  be  done 
with  the  assistance  of  the  schooner,  the  moral  effect  of 
such  an  alliance  would,  in  .all  probability,  secure  Ooroony's 
ascendency  as  long  as  such  an  alliance  lasted. 

It  would  not  have  been  easy  to  give  a  clearer  illustration 
of  the  truth  that  "  knowledge  is  power,"  than  the  case  now 
before  us  affords.  Here  was  a  small  vessel,  of  less  than  a 
hundred  tons  in  measurement,  with  a  crew  of  twelve  men, 
and  armed  with  three  guns,  that  was  not  only  deemed  to 
be  sufficient,  but  which  was  in  fact  amply  sufficient  to 
change  a  dynasty  among  a  people  who  counted  their  hosts 
in  thousands.  The  expedients  of  civilized  life  gave  the 
governor  this  ascendency,  and  he  determined  to  use  it 
justly,  and  in  moderation.  It  was  his  wish  to  avoid  blood 
shed  ;  and  after  learning  all  the  facts  he  could,  he  set  about 
his  task  coolly  and  with  prudence. 

The  first  thing  done,  was  to  carry  the  schooner  in,  with 
in  reach  of  shot  of  Waally's  principal  fortress,  where  his 
ruling  chiefs  resided,  and  which  in  fact  was  the  hold  where 
about  a  hundred  of  his  followers  dwelt ;  fellows  that  kept 
the  whole  island  in  fear,  and  who  rendered  it  subservient 
to  Waally's  wishes.  This  fortress,  fort,  or  whatever  it 
should  be  called,  was  then  summoned,  its  chief  being  com* 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  285 

manded  to  quit,  not  only  the  hold,  but  the  island  altoge 
ther.  The  answer  was  a  defiance.  As  time  was  given  for 
the  reception  of  this  reply,  measures  had  been  taken  to 
support  the  summons  by  a  suitable  degree  of  concert  and 
activity.  Ooroony  landed  in  person,  and  got  among  his 
friends  on  the  island,  who,  assured  of  the  support  of  the 
schooner,  took  up  arms  to  a  man,  and  appeared  in  a  force 
that,  of  itself,  was  sufficient  to  drive  Waally's  men  into  the 
sea.  Nevertheless,  the  last  made  a  show  of  resistance 
until  the  governor  fired  his  six-pounder  at  them.  The  shot 
passed  through  the  wooden  pickets,  and,  though  it  hurt  no 
one,  it  made  such  a  clatter,  that  the  chief  in  command  sent 
out  a  palm-branch,  and  submitted.  This  bloodless  conquest 
caused  a  revolution  at  once,  in  several  of  the  less  important 
islands,  and  in  eight-and-forty  hours,  Ooroony  found  him 
self  where  he  had  been  when  Betts  appeared  in  the  Nesha- 
mony.  Waally  was  fain  to  make  the  best  of  matters,  and 
even  he  came  in,  acknowledged  his  crimes,  obtained  a 
pardon,  and  paid  tribute.  The  effect  of  this  submission 
on  the  part  of  Waally,  was  to  establish  Ooroony  more 
strongly  than  ever  in  authority,  and  to  give  him  a  chance 
of  reigning  peacefully  for  the  remainder  of  his  days.  All 
this  was  done  in  less  than  a  week  after  the  war  had  Begun 
in  earnest,  by  the  invasion  of  the  Reef! 

The  governor  was  too  desirous  to  relieve  the  anxiety  of 
those  he  had  left  behind  him  to  accept  the  invitations  that 
he,  and  his  party,  now  received  to  make  merry.  He  traded 
a  little  with  Ooroony's  people,  obtaining  many  things  that 
were  useful  in  exchange  for  old  iron,  and  other  articles  of 
little  or  no  value.  What  was  more,  he  ascertained  that 
sandal-wood  was  to  be  found  on  Rancocus  Island  in  small 
quantities,  and  in  this  group  in  abundance.  A  contract 
was  made,  accordingly,  for  the  cutting  and  preparing  of  a 
considerable  quantity  of  this  wood,  which  was  to  be  ready 
for  delivery  in  the  course  of  three  months,  when  it  was 
understood  that  the  schooner  was  to  return  and  take  it  in. 
These  arrangements  completed,  the  Friend  Abraham  White 
sailed  for  home. 

Instead  of  entangling  himself  in  the  channels  to  leeward, 
Mark  made  the  land  well  to  the  northward,  entering  the 
group  by  a  passage  that  led  him  quite  down  to  the  Reef, 


286  THE   CRATER; 

as  the  original  island  was  now  uniformly  called,  with  a 
flowing  sheet.  Of  course  the  schooner  was  seen  an  hour 
before  she  arrived,  and  everybody  was  out  on  the  Reef  to 
greet  the  adventurers.  Fears  mingled  with  the  other  mani 
festations  of  joy,  when  the  result  of  this  great  enterprise 
came  to  be  known.  Mark  had  a  delicious  moment  when 
he  folded  the  sobbing  Bridget  to  his  heart,  and  Friend 
Martha  was  overcome  in  a  way  that  it  was  not  usual  for 
her  to  betray  feminine  weakness. 

Everybody  exulted  in  the  success  of  the  colony,  and  it 
was  hoped  that  the  future  would  be  as  quiet  as  it  was  secure. 

But  recent  events  began  to  give  the  governor  trouble,  on 
other  accounts.  The  accession  to  his  numbers,  as  well  as 
the  fact  that  these  men  were  seamen,  and  had  belonged  to 
the  Rancocus,  set  him  thinking  on  the  subject  of  his  duty 
to  the  owners  of  that  vessel.  So  long  as  he  supposed  him* 
self  to  be  a  cast-away,  he  had  made  use  of  their  property 
without  compunction,  but  circumstances  were  now  changed, 
and  he  felt  it  to  be  a  duty  seriously  to  reflect  on  the  possi 
bility  of  doing  something  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  had, 
undesignedly  it  is  true,  contributed  so  much  to  his  own 
comfort.  In  order  to  give  this  important  subject  a  due 
consideration,  as  well  as  to  relieve  the  minds  of  those  at 
the  Peak,  the  Abraham  sailed  for  the  cove  the  morning 
after  her  arrival  at  the  Reef.  Bridget  went  across  to  pay 
Anne  a  visit,  and  most  of  the  men  were  of  the  party.  The 
Neshamony  had  carried  over  the  intelligence  of  Waally's 
repulse,  and  of  the  Abraham's  having  gone  to  that  chief's 
island,  but  the  result  of  this  last  expedition  remained  to  be 
communicated. 

The  run  was  made  in  six  hours,  and  the  Abraham  was 
taken  into  the  cove,  and  anchored  there,  just  as  easily  as 
one  of  the  smaller  craft.  There  was  water  enough  for 
anything  that  floated,  the  principal  want  being  that  of 
room,  though  there  was  enough  even  of  room  to  receive  a 
dozen  vessels  of  size.  The  place,  indeed,  was  a  snug, 
natural  basin,  rather  than  a  port,  but  art  could  not  have 
made  it  safer,  or  even  much  more  commodious.  It  was 
all  so  small  an  island  could  ever  require  in  the  way  of  a 
haven,  it  not  being  probable  that  the  trade  of  the  place 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  287 

would  reach  an  amount  that  the  shipping  it  could  hold 
would  not  carry. 

The  governor  now  summoned  a  general  council  of  the 
colony.  The  seven  seamen  attended,  as  well  as  all  the 
others,  one  or  two  at  the  crater  excepted,  and  the  business 
in  hand  was  entered  on  soberly,  and,  in  some  respects, 
solemnly.  In  the  first  place,  the  constitution  and  intentions 
of  the  colonists  were  laid  before  the  seven  men,  and  they 
were  asked  as  to  their  wishes  for  the  future.  Four  of  these 
men,  including  Brown,  at  once  signed  the  constitution, 
and  were  sworn  in  as  citizens.  It  was  their  wish  to  pass 
their  days  in  thit  delicious  climate,  and  amid  the  abun 
dance  of  those  rich  and  pleasing  islands.  The  other  three 
engaged  with  Mark  for  a  time,  but  expressed  a  desire  to 
return  to  America,  after  awhile.  Wives  were  wanting; 
and  this  the  governor  saw,  plainly  enough,  was  a  difficulty 
that  must  be  got  over,  to  keep  the  settlement  contented. 
Not  that  a  wife  may  not  make  a  man's  home  very  misera 
ble,  as  well  as  very  happy ;  but,  most  people  prefer  trying 
the  experiment  for  themselves,  instead  of  profiting  by  the 
experience  of  others. 

As  soon  as  the  question  of  citizenship  was  decided,  and 
all  the  engagements  were  duly  made,  the  governor  laid  his 
question  of  conscience  before  the  general  council.  For  a 
long  time  it  had  been  supposed  that  the  Rancocus  could 
not  be  moved.  The  eruption  had  left  her  in  a  basin,  or 
hole,  where  there  was  just  water  enough  to  float  her,  while 
twelve  feet  was  the  most  that  could  be  found  on  the  side 
on  which  the  channel  was  deepest.  Now,  thirteen  feet  aft 
was  the  draught  of  the  ship  when  she  was  launched.  This 
Bob  well  knew,  having  been  launched  in  her.  But,  Brown 
had  suggested  the  possibility  of  lifting  the  vessel  eighteen 
inches  or  two  feet,  and  of  thus  carrying  her  over  the  rock 
by  which  she  was  imprisoned.  Once  liberated  from  that 
place,  every  one  knew  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in  get 
ting  the  ship  to  sea,  since  in  one  of  the  channels,  that 
which  led  to  the  northward,  a  vessel  might  actually  carry 
out  fully  five  fathoms,  or  quite  thirty  feet.  This  channel 
had  been  accurately  sounded  by  the  governor  himself,  and 
of  the  fact  he  was  well  assured.  Indeed,  he  had  sounded 
most  of  the  true  channels  around  the  Reef.  By  true  chan- 


288  THE   CRATER; 

nels  is  meant  those  passages  that  led  from  the  open  watel 
quite  up  to  the  crater,  or  which  admitted  the  passage  of 
vessels,  or  boats ;  while  the  false  were  culs  de  sac,  through 
which  there  were  no  real  passages. 

The  possibility,  thus  admitted,  of  taking  the  Rancocus 
to  sea,  a  grave  question  of  conscience  arose.  The  property 
belonged  to  certain  owners  in  Philadelphia,  and  was  it  not 
a  duty  to  take  it  there?  It  is  true,  Friend  Abraham  White 
and  his  partners  had  received  back  their  money  from  the 
insurers — this  fact  Bridget  remembered  to  have  heard  be 
fore  she  left  home;  but  those  insurers,  then,  had  their 
claims.  Now,  the  vessel  was  still  sound  and  seaworthy. 
Her  upper  works  might  require  caulking,  and  her  rigging 
could  not  be  of  the  soundest ;  but,  on  the  whole,  the  Ran 
cocus  was  still  a  very  valuable  ship,  and  a  voyage  might 
be  made  for  her  yet.  The  governor  thought  that  could 
she  get  her  lower  hold  filled  with  sandal-wood,  and  that 
wood  be  converted  into  teas  at  Canton,  as  much  would  be 
made  as  would  render  every  one  contented  with  the  result 
of  the  close  of  the  voyage,  disastrous  as  had  been  its  com 
mencement.  Then  Bridget  would  be  of  age  shortly,  when 
she  would  become  entitled  to  an  amount  of  property  that, 
properly  invested,  would  contribute  largely  to  the  wealth 
and  power  of  the  colony,  as  well  as  to  those  of  its  governor. 

In  musing  on  all  these  plans,  Mark  had  not  the  least 
idea  of  abandoning  the  scheme >foR» colonizing.  That  was 
dearer  to  him  now  than  ever ;  nevertheless,  he  saw  obsta 
cles  to  their  execution.  No  one  could  navigate  the  ship 
but  himself;  in  truth,  he  was  the  only  proper  person  to 
carry  her  home,  and  to  deliver  her  to  her  owners,  whom 
soever  those  might  now  be,  and  he  could  not  conceal  from 
himself  the  propriety,  as  well  as  the  necessity,  of  his  going  in 
her  himself.  On  the  other  hand,  what  might  not  be  the  con 
sequences  to  the  colony,  of  his  absence  for  twelve  months? 
A  less  time  than  that  would  not  suffice  to  do  all  that  was> 
required  to  be  done.  Could  he  take  Bridget  with  him,  or 
could  he  bear  to  leave  her  behind?  Her  presence  might 
be  necessary  for  the  disposal  of  the  real  estate  of  which 
she  was  the  mistress,  while  her  quitting  the  colony  might 
be  the  signal  for  breaking  it  up  altogether,  under  the  im 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  289 

pression  that  the  two  persons  most  interested  in  it  would 
never  return. 

Thus  did  the  management  of  this  whole  matter  become 
exceedingly  delicate.  Heaton  and  Betts,  and  in  the  end 
all  the  rest,  were  of  opinion  that  the  Rancocus  ought  to  be 
sent  back  to  America,  for  the  benefit  of  those  to  whom  she 
now  legally  belonged.  Could  she  get  a  cargo,  or  any  con 
siderable  amount  of  sandal-wood,  and  exchange  it  for  teas 
in  Canton,  the  proceeds  of  these  teas  might  make  a  very 
sufficient  return  for  all  the  outlays  of  the  voyage,  as  well 
as  for  that  portion  of  the  property  which  had  been  used  by 
the  colonists.  The  use  of  this  property  was  a  very  different 
thing,  now,  from  what  it  was  when  Mark  and  Betts  had 
every  reason  to  consider  themselves  as  merely  shipwrecked 
seamen.  Then,  it  was  not  only  a  matter  of  necessity,  but, 
through  that  necessity,  one  of  right ;  but,  now,  the  most 
that  could  be  said  about  it,  was  that  it  might  be  very  con 
venient.  The  principles  of  the  colonists  were  yet  too  good 
to  allow  of  their  deceiving  themselves  on  this  subject.  They 
had,  most  of  them,  engaged  with  the  owners  to  take  care 
of  this  property,  and  it  might  be  questioned,  if  such  a  wreck 
had  ever  occurred  as  to  discharge  the  crew.  The  rule  in 
such  cases  we  believe  to  be,  that,  as  seamen  have  a  lien  on 
the  vessel  for  their  wages,  when  that  lien  ceases  to  be  of 
value,  their  obligations  to  the  ship  terminate.  If  the  Ran 
cocus  could  be  carried  to  America,  no  one  belonging  to  her 
was  yet  legally  exonerated  from  his  duties. 

After  weighing  all  these  points,  it  was  gravely  and 
solemnly  declared  that  an  effort  should  first  be  made  to  get 
the  ship  out  of  her  present  duresse,  and  that  the  question 
of  future  proceedings  should  then  be  settled  in  another 
council.  In  the  mean  time,  further  and  more  valuable 
presents  were  to  be  sent  to  both  Ooroony  and  Waally,  from 
the  stores  of  beads,  knives,  axes,  &c.,  that  were  in  the  ship, 
with  injunctions  to  them  to  get  as  much  sandal-wood  as  was 
possible  cut,  and  to  have  it  brought  down  to  the  coast. 
Betts  was  to  carry  the  presents,  in  the  Neshamony,  ac 
companied  by  Jones,  who  spoke  the  language,  when  he  was 
to  return  and  aid  in  the  work  upon  the  vessel. 

The  duty  enjoined  in  these  decisions  was  commenced 
without  delay.  Heaton  and  Unus  were  left  at  the  Peak,  as 
25 


290  THE   CRATER; 

usual,  to  look  after  things  in  that  quarter,  and  to  keep  the 
mill  from  being  idle,  while  all  the  rest  of  the  men  returned 
to  the  Reef,  and  set  about  the  work  on  the  ship.  The  first 
step  taken  was  to  send  down  all  the  spars  and  rigging  that 
remained  aloft ;  after  which  everything  was  got  up  out  of 
the  hold,  and  rolled,  or  dragged  ashore.  Of  cargo,  strictly 
speaking,  the  Rancocus  had  very  little  in  weight,  but  she 
had  a  great  many  water-casks,  four  or  five  times  as  many  as 
would  have  been  put  into  her  in  an  ordinary  voyage.  These 
casks  had  all  been  filled  with  fresh  water,  to  answer  the 
double  purpose  of  a  supply  for  the  people,  and  as  ballast 
for  the  ship.  When  these  casks  were  all  got  on  deck, 
and  the  water  was  started,  it  was  found  that  the  vessel 
floated  several  inches  lighter  than  before.  The  sending 
ashore  of  the  spars,  sails,  rigging,  lumber,  provisions,  &/c., 
produced  a  still  further  effect,  and,  after  carefully  comparing 
the  soundings,  and  the  present  draught  of  the  vessel,  the 
governor  found  it  would  be  necessary  to  lift  the  last  only 
eight  inches,  to  get  her  out  of  her  natural  dock.  This 
result  greatly  encouraged  the  labourers,  who  proceeded  with 
renewed  spirit.  As  it  would  be  altogether  useless  to  over 
haul  the  rigging,  caulk  decks,  &c.,  unless  the  ship  could 
be  got  out  of  her  berth,  everybody  worked  with  that  end 
in  view  at  first.  In  the  course  of  a  week,  the  water-casks 
were  under  her  bottom,  and  it  was  thought  that  the  vessel 
would  have  about  an  inch  to  spare.  A  gale  having  blown 
in  the  water,  and  a  high  tide  coming  at  the  same  time,  the 
governor  determined  to  try  the  experiment  of  crossing  the 
barrier.  The  order  came  upon  the  men  suddenly,  for  no 
one  thought  the  attempt  would  be  made,  until  the  ship  was 
lifted  an  inch  or  two  higher.  But  Mark  saw  what  the  wind 
had  been  doing  for  them,  and  he  lost  not  a  moment.  The 
vessel  was  moved,  brought  head  to  her  course,  and  the 
lines  were  hauled  upon.  Away  went  the  Rancocus,  which 
was  now  moved  for  the  first  time  since  the  eruption ! 

Just  as  the  governor  fancied  that  the  ship  was  going 
clear,  she  struck  aft.  On  examination  it  was  found  that 
her  heel  was  on  a  knoll  of  the  rock,  and  that  had  she  been 
a  fathom  on  either  side  of  it,  she  would  have  gone  clear. 
The  hold,  however,  was  very  slight,  and  by  getting  two  of 
the  anchors  to  the  cat-heads,  the  vessel  was  canted  suffi- 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  291 

ciently  to  admit  of  her  passing.  Then  came  cheers  for 
success,  and  the  cry  of  "  walk  away  with  her !"  That 
same  day  the  Rancocus  was  hauled  alongside  of  the  Reef, 
made  fast,  and  secured  just  as  she  would  have  been  at  her 
own  wharf,  in  Philadelphia. 

Now  the  caulkers  began  their  part  of  the  job.  When 
caulked  and  scraped,  she  was  painted,  her  rigging  was 
overhauled  and  got  into  its  places,  the  masts  and  yard3 
were  sent  aloft,  and  all  the  sails  were  overhauled.  A  tier 
of  casks,  filled  with  fresh  water,  was  put  into  her  lower 
hold  for  ballast,  and  all  the  stores  necessary  for  the  voyage 
were  sent  on  board  her.  Among  other  things  overhauled 
were  the  provisions.  Most  of  the  beef  and  pork  was  con 
demned,  and  no  small  part  of  the  bread ;  still,  enough  re 
mained  to  take  the  ship's  company  to  a  civilized  port.  So 
reluctant  was  the  governor  to  come  to  the  decision  con 
cerning  the  crew,  that  he  even  bent  sails  before  a  council 
was  again  convened.  But  there  was  no  longer  any  good 
excuse  for  delay.  Betts  had  long  been  back,  and  brought 
the  report  that  the  sandal-wood  was  being  hauled  to  the 
coast  in  great  quantities,  both  factions  working  with  right 
good  will.  In  another  month  the  ship  might  be  loaded  and 
sail  for  America. 

To  the  astonishment  of  every  one,  Bridget  appeared  in 
the  council,  and  announced  her  determination  to  remain 
behind,  while  her  husband  carried  the  ship  to  her  owners. 
She  saw  and  felt  the  nature  of  his  duty,  and  could  consent 
to  his  performing  it  to  the  letter.  Mark  was  quite  taken 
by  surprise  by  this  heroic  and  conscientious  act  in  his 
young  wife,  and  he  had  a  great  struggle  with  himself  on 
the  subject  of  leaving  her  behind  him.  Heaton,  however, 
was  so  very  prudent,  and  the  present  relations  with  their 
neighbours — neighbours  four  hundred  miles  distant — were 
so  amicable,  the  whole  matter  was  so  serious,  and  the  duty 
so  obvious,  that  he  finally  acquiesced,  without  suffering  his 
doubts  to  be  seen. 

The  next  thing  was  to  select  a  crew.  The  three  men 
who  had  declined  becoming  citizens  of  the  colony,  John 
son,  Edwards,  and  Bright,  all  able  seamen,  went  as  a  matter 
of  course.  Betts  would  have  to  go  in  the  character  of 
mate,  though  Bigelow  might  have  got  along  in  that  capa« 


292  THE   CRATER; 

city  Belts  knew  nothing  of  navigation,  while  Bigelow 
micrht  find  his  way  into  port  on  a  pinch.  On  the  other 
hand  Bettswas  a  prime  seaman  — a  perfect  long-cue,  m 
fact  L.  whereas  the  most  that  could  be  said  of  Bigelow 
in  this  respect,  was  that  he  was  a  stout,  willing  fellow,  and 
was  much  better  than  a  raw  hand.  The  governor  named 
Betts  as  his  first,  and  Bigelow  as  his  second  officer.  Brown 
remained  behind,  having  charge  of  the  navy  in  the  gover 
nor's  absence.  He  had  a  private  interview  with  Mark, 
however,  in  which  he  earnestly  requested  that  the  governor 
would  have  the  goodness  "  to  pick  out  for  him  the  sort  of 
gal  that  he  thought  would  make  a  fellow  a  good  and  virtu 
ous  wife,  and  bring  her  out  with  him,  in  whatever  way  he 
micrht  return."  Mark  made  as  fair  promises  as  the  cir 
cumstances  of  the  case  would  allow,  and  Brown  was  satis 
fied. 

It  was  thought  prudent  to  have  eight  white  men  on  board 
the  ship  Mark  intending  to  borrow  as  many  more  of 
Ooroony's  people,  to  help  pull  and  haul.  With  such  a 
crew,  he  thought  he  might  get  along  very  well. 
chose  to  remain  with  his  friend  Brown  :  but  Dickinson  and 
Harris,  though  ready. and  willing  to  return,  wished  to  sail 
in  the  ship.  Like  Brown,  they  wanted  wives,  but  ehoM  to 
select  them  for  themselves.  On  this  subject  Wattles  said 
nothing  Wre  may  add  here,  that  Unus  and  Juno  were 
united  before  the  ship  sailed.  They  took  up  land  on  the 
Peak,  where  Unus  erected  for  himself  a  very  neat  cabin. 
Bridget  set  the  young  couple  up,  giving  the  furniture,  a 
piir,  some  fowls,  and  other  necessaries. 

CAt  lenmh  the  day  for  sailing  arrived.  Previously  to  de- 
partincr  Mark  had  carried  the  ship  through  thn  channel, 
and  she  was  anchored  in  a  very  good  *nd  safe  rndstead, 
outside  of  everything.  The  leave-takuig  took  Vace  on 
board  her.  Bridget  wept  long  in  her  ^band's  ?rns,  but 
finally  got  so  far  the  command  of  hersf*f,  ™  U>  a»r  me  an 
air  of  encouraging  firmness  among  the  '.*.r'*r  worn** .  By 
this  time,  it  was  every  way  so  ob\ioi»»  Mark's  pr  sence 
would  be  indispensable  in  America,  tb-«  ><«*  absent  was 
r  rrarded  as  a  necessity  beyond  control 
to  part  for  a  year,  nor  was  the  last  *ar*K*XA  eatireli  free 
from  anguish.  Friend  Martha  Betts  to'Jr  tovre  of  F.'ienv 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  293 

Robert  with  a  great  appearance  of  calmness,  though  she 
felt  the  separation  keenly.  A  quiet,  warm-hearted  woman, 
she  had  made  her  husband  very  happy  ;  and  Bob  was  quite 
sensible  of  her  worth.  But  to  him  the  sea  was  a  home, 
and  he  regarded  a  voyage  round  the  world  much  as  a 
countryman  would  look  upon  a  trip  to  market.  He  saw 
his  wife  always  in  the  vista  created  by  his  imagination,  but 
she  was  at  the  end  of  the  voyage. 

At  the  appointed  hour,  the  Rancocus  sailed,  Brown  and 
Wattles  going  down  with  her  in  the  Neshamony  as  far  as 
Betto's  group,  in  order  to  bring  back  the  latest  intelligence 
of  her  proceedings.  The  governor  now  got  Ooroony  to 
assemble  his  priests  and  chiefs,  and  to  pronounce  a  taboo 
on  all  intercourse  with  the  whites  for  one  year.  At  the 
end  of  that  time,  he  promised  to  return,  and  to  bring  with 
him  presents  that  should  render  every  one  glad  to  welcome 
him  back.  Even  Waally  was  included  in  these  arrange 
ments;  and  when  Mark  finally  sailed,  it  was  with  a  strong 
hope  that  in  virtue  of  the  taboo,  of  Ooroony's  power,  and 
of  his  rival's  sagacity,  he  might  rely  on  the  colony's  meet 
ing  with  no  molestation  during  his  absence.  The  reader 
will  see  that  the  Peak  and  Reef  would  be  in  a  very  de 
fenceless  condition,  were  it  not  for  the  schooner.  By 
means  of  that  vessel,  under  the  management  of  Brown,  as 
sisted  by  Wattles.  Socrates  and  Unus,  it  is  true,  a  fleet  of 
canoes  might  be  beaten  off:  but  any  accident  to  the  Abra 
ham  would  be  very  likely  to  prove  fatal  to  the  colony,  in  the 
event  of  an  invasion,  instructions  were  riven  to  Heaton 
to  keep  the  schooner  moving  about,  and  particularly  to 
make  a  trip  as  often  as  once  in  two  months,  to  Ooroony's 
country,  in  order  to  look  after  the  state  of  things  there. 
The  pretence  was  to  be  trade  —  beads,  hatchets,  and  old 
iron  being  taken  each  time,  in  exchange  lor  sandal-wood; 
but  the  principal  object  was  to  keep  an  eye  on  the  move 
ments,  and  to  get  an  insight  into  the  policy,  of  the  savages 
After  taking  in  a  very  considerable  quantity  of  sandal 
wovul,  and  procuring  eight  active  assistants  from  Ooroony 
the  Rancocus  got  under  way  for  Canton.  By  the  Nesna 
mony,  which  saw  her  into  the  oiling,  letters  were  sent  back 
to  the  Reef,  when  the  governor  squared  away  for  his  Dort 
At  the  end  of  fifty  days,  the  ship  reached  Canton,  where  a 
25* 


294  THE  CRATER; 

speedy  and  excellent  sale  was  made  of  her  cargo.  So  very 
lucrative  did  Mark  make  this  transaction,  that,  rinding 
himself  with  assets  after  filling  up  with  teas,  he  thought 
himself  justified  in  changing  his  course  of  proceeding.  A 
small  American  brig,  which  was  not  deemed  fit  to  double 
the  capes,  and  to  come  on  a  stormy  coast,  was  on  sale. 
She  could  run  several  years  in  a  sea  as  mild  as  the  Pacific, 
and  Mark  purchased  her  for  a  song.  He  put  as  many 
useful  things  on  board  her  as  he  could  find,  including  seve 
ral  cows,  &c.  Dry  English  cows  were  not  difficult  to 
find,  the  ships  from  Europe  often  bringing  out  the  animals, 
and  turning  them  off  when  useless.  Mark  was  enabled  to 
purchase  six,  which,  rightly  enough,  he  thought  would 
prove  a  great  acquisition  to  the  colony.  A  plentiful  sup 
ply  of  iron  was  also  provided,  as  was  ammunition,  arms, 
and  guns.  The  whole  outlay,  including  the  cost  of  the 
vessel,  was  less  than  seven  thousand  dollars;  which  sum 
Mark  knew  he  should  receive  in  Philadelphia,  on  account 
of  the  personal  property  of  Bridget,  and  with  which  he 
had  made  up  his  mind  to  replace  the  proceeds  of  the  san 
dal-wood,  thus  used,  did  those  interested  exact  it.  As  for 
the  vessel,  she  sailed  like  a  witch,  was  coppered  and  cop 
per-fastened,  but  was  both  old  and  weak.  She  had  quar 
ters,  having  been  used  once  as  a  privateer,  and  mounted 
ten  sixes.  Her  burthen  was  two  hundred  tons,  and  her 
name  the  Mermaid.  The  papers  were  all  American,  and 
in  perfect  rule. 

The  governor  might  not  have  made  this  purchase,  had  it 
not  been  for  the  circumstance  that  he  met  an  old  acquaint 
ance  in  Canton,  who  had  got  married  in  Calcutta  to  a 
pretty  and  very  well-mannered  English  girl — a  step  that 
lost  him  his  berth,  however,  on  board  a  Philadelphia  ship. 
Saunders  was  two  or  three  years  Mark's  senior,  and  of  an 
excellent  disposition  and  character.  When  he  heard  the 
history  of  the  colony,  he  professed  a  desire  to  join  it,  en 
gaging  to  pick  up  a  crew  of  Americans,  who  were  in  his 
own  situation,  or  had  no  work  on  their  hands,  and  to  take  the 
brig  to  the  Reef.  This  arrangement  was  made  and  carried 
out;  the  Mermaid  sailing  for  the  crater,  the  day  before  the 
Rancocus  left  for  Philadelphia,  having  Bigelow  on  board 
as  pilot  and  first  officer ;  while  Woolston  shipped  an  officer 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  295 

to  supply  his  place.  The  two  vessels  met  in  the  China 
seas,  and  passed  a  week  in  company,  when  each  steered 
her  course ;  the  governor  quite  happy  in  thinking  that  he 
had  made  this  provision  for  the  good  of  his  people.  The 
arrival  of  the  Mermaid  would  be  an  eventful  day  in  the 
colony,  on  every  account ;  and,  the  instructions  of  Saun- 
ders  forbidding  his  quitting  the  islands  until  the  end  of  the 
year,  her  presence  would  be  a  great  additional  means  of 
security. 

It  is  unnecessary  for  us  to  dwell  on  the  passage  of  the 
Rancocus.  In  due  time  she  entered  the  capes  of  the 
Delaware,  surprising  all  interested  with  her  appearance. 
Friend  Abraham  White  was  dead,  and  the  firm  dissolved. 
But  the  property  had  all  been  transferred  to  the  insurers 
by  the  payment  of  the  amount  underwritten,  and  Mark 
made  his  report  at  the  office.  The  teas  were  sold  to  great 
advantage,  and  the  whole  matter  was  taken  fairly  into  con 
sideration.  After  deducting  the  sum  paid  the  firm,  prin 
cipal  and  interest,  the  insurance  company  resolved  to  give 
the  ship,  and  the  balance  of  the  proceeds  of  the  sale,  to 
Captain  Woolston,  as  a  reward  for  his  integrity  and  pru 
dence.  Mark  had  concealed  nothing,  but  stated  what  he 
had  done  in  reference  to  the  Mermaid,  and  told  his  whole 
story  with  great  simplicity,  and  with  perfect  truth.  The 
result  was,  that  the  young  man  got,  in  addition  to  the  ship, 
which  was  legally  conveyed  to  him,  some  eleven  thousand 
dollars  in  hard  money.  Thus  was  honesty  shown  to  be  the 
best  policy ! 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  his  success  made 
Mark  Woolston  a  great  man,  in  a  small  way.  Not  only 
was  he  received  with  open  arms  by  all  of  his  own  blood ; 
but  Dr.  Yardley  now  relented,  and  took  him  by  the  hand. 
A  faithful  account  was  rendered  of  his  stewardship ;  and 
Mark  received  as  much  ready  money,  on  account  of  his 
wife,  as  placed  somewhat  more  than  twenty  thousand  dol* 
lars  at  his  disposal.  With  this  money  he  set  to  work,  with 
out  losing  a  day,  to  make  arrangements  to  return  to  Bridget 
and  the  crater ;  for  he  always  deemed  that  his  proper  abode, 
in  preference  to  the  Peak.  In  this  feeling,  his  charming 
wife  coincided ;  both  probably  encouraging  a  secret  inte- 


296  THE   CRATER; 

rest  in  the  former,  in  consequence  of  the  solitary  hours 
that  had  been  passed  there  by  the  young  husband,  while 
his  anxious  partner  was  far  away. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

"  There  is  no  gloom  on  earth,  for  God  above 

Chastens -in  love; 
Transmuting  sorrows  into  golden  joy 

Free  from  alloy. 

His  dearest  attribute  is  still  to  bless, 
And  man's  most  welcome  hymn  is  grateful  cheerfulness." 

MORAL  ALCHEMT. 

THE  mode  of  proceeding  now  required  great  caution  on 
the  part  of  Mark  Woolston.  His  mind  was  fully  made  up 
not  to  desert  his  islands,  although  this  might  easily  be 
done,  by  fitting  out  the  ship  for  another  voyage,  filling  her 
with  sandal-wood,  and  bringing  off  all  who  chose  to  aban 
don  the  place.  But  Woolston  had  become  infatuated  with 
the  climate,  which  had  all  the  witchery  of  a  low  latitude 
without  any  of  its  lassitude.  The  sea-breezes  kept  the 
frame  invigorated,  and  the  air  reasonably  cool,  even  at  the 
Reef;  while,  on  the  Peak,  there  was  scarcely  ever  a  day, 
in  the  warmest  months,  when  one  could  not  labour  at  noon. 
In  this  respect  the  climate  did  not  vary  essentially  from 
that  of  Pennsylvania,  the  difference  existing  in  the  fact  that 
there  was  no  winter  in  his  new  country.  Nothing  takes 
such  a  hold  on  men  as  a  delicious  climate.  They  may  not 
be  sensible  of  all  its  excellencies  while  in  its  enjoyment, 
but  the  want  of  it  is  immediately  felt,  and  has  an  influence 
on  all  their  pleasures.  Even  the  scenery-hunter  submits 
to  this  witchery  of  climate,  which  casts  a  charm  over  the 
secondary  beauties  of  nature,  as  a  sweet  and  placid  temper 
tenders  the  face  of  woman  more  lovely  than  the  colour  of 
a  skin,  or  the  brilliancy  of  fine  eyes.  The  Alps  and  the 
Apennines  furnish  a  standing  proof  of  the  trutn  of  thii 


«  OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  297 

fact.  Ass  respects  grandeur,  a  startling  magnificence,  and 
all  that  at  first  takes  the  reason,  as  well  as  the  tastes,  by 
surprise,  the  first  are  vastly  in  advance  of  the  last;  yet,  no 
man  of  feeling  or  sentiment,  probably  ever  dwelt  a  twelve 
month  amid  each,  without  becoming  more  attached  to  the 
last.  We  wonder  at  Switzerland,  while  we  get  to  love 
Italy.  The  difference  is  entirely  owing  to  climate ;  for,  did 
the  Alps  rise  in  a  lower  latitude,  they  would  be  absolutely 
peerless. 

But  Mark  Woolston  had  no  thought  of  abandoning  the 
crater  and  the  Peak.  Nor  did  he  desire  to  people  them  at 
random,  creating  a  population  by  any  means,  incorporating 
moral  diseases  in  his  body  politic  by  the  measures  taken  to 
bring  it  into  existence.  On  the  contrary,  it  was  his  wish, 
rather,  to  procure  just  as  much  force  as  might  be  necessary 
to  security,  so  divided  in  pursuits  and  qualities  as  to  con 
duce  to  comfort  and  civilization,  and  then  to  trust  to  the 
natural  increase  for  the  growth  that  might  be  desirable  in 
the  end.  Such  a  policy  evidently  required  caution  and 
prudence.  The  reader  will  perceive  that  governor  Wool 
ston  was  not  influenced  by  the  spirit  of  trade  that  is  now 
so  active,  preferring  happiness  to  wealth,  and  morals  to 
power. 

Among  Woolston's  acquaintances,  there  was  a  young 
man  of  about  his  own  age,  of  the  name  of  Pennock,  who 
struck  him  as  a  person  admirably  suited  for  his  purposes. 
This  Pennock  had  married  very  young,  and  was  already 
the  father  of  three  children.  He  began  to  feel  the  pressure 
of  society,  for  he  was  poor.  He  was  an  excellent  farmer, 
accustomed  to  toil,  while  he  was  also  well  educated,  having 
been  intended  for  one  of  the  professions.  To  Pennock 
Mark  told  his  story,  exhibited  his  proofs,  and  laid  bare  his 
whole  policy,  under  a  pledge  of  secresy,  offering  at  the 
same  time  to  receive  his  friend,  his  wife,  children,  and  two 
unmarried  sisters,  into  the  colony.  After  taking  time  to 
reflect  and  to  consult,  Pennock  accepted  the  offer  as  frank 
ly  as  it  had  been  made.  From  this  time  John  Pennock 
relieved  the  governor,  in  a  great  measure,  of  the  duty  of 
selecting  the  remaining  emigrants,  taking  that  office  on 
himself.  This  allowed  Mark  to  attend  to  his  purchases, 
and  to  getting  the  ship  ready  for  sea.  Two  of  his  own 


298  THE   CRATER; 

brothers,  however,  expressed  a  wish  to  join  the  new  com 
munity,  and  Charles  and  Abraham  Woolston  were  received 
in  the  colony  lists.  Half-a-dozen  more  were  admitted,  by 
means  of  direct  application  to  the  governor  himself,  though 
the  accessions  were  principally  obtained  through  the  nego 
tiations  and  measures  of  Pennock.  All  was  done  with 
great  secrsry,  it  being  Mark's  anxious  desire,  on  many  ac 
counts,  not  to  attract  public  attention  to  his  colony. 

The  reasons  were  numerous  and  sufficient  for  this  wish 
to  remain  unknown.  In  the  first  place,  the  policy  of  re 
taining  the  monopoly  of  a  trade  that  must  be  enormously 
profitable,  was  too  obvious  to  need  any  arguments  to  sup 
port  it.  So  long  as  the  sandal-wood  lasted,  so  long  would 
it  be  in  the  power  of  the  colonists  to  coin  money ;  while 
it  was  certain  that  competitors  would  rush  in,  the  moment 
the  existence  of  this  mine  of  wealth  should  be  known. 
Then,  the  governor  apprehended  the  cupidity  and  ambition 
of  the  old-established  governments,  when  it  should  be 
known  that  territory  was  to  be  acquired.  It  was  scarcely 
possible  for  man  to  possess  any  portion  of  this  earth  by  a 
title  better  than  that  with  which  Mark  Woolston  was  in 
vested  with  his  domains.  But,  what  is  right  compared  to 
might!  Of  his  native  country,  so  abused  in  our  own  times 
for  its  rapacity,  and  the  desire  to  extend  its  dominions  by 
any  means,  Mark  felt  no  apprehension.  Of  all  the  power 
ful  nations  of  the  present  day,  America,  though  riot  abso 
lutely  spotless,  has  probably  the  least  to  reproach  herself 
with,  on  the  score  of  lawless  and  purely  ambitious  acqui 
sitions.  Even  her  conquests  in  open  war  have  been  few, 
and  are  not  yet  determined  in  character.  In  the  end,  it 
will  be  found  that  little  will  be  taken  that  Mexico  could 
keep ;  and  had  that  nation  observed  towards  this,  ordinary 
justice  and  faith,  in  her  intercourse  and  treaties,  that  which 
has  so  suddenly  and  vigorously  been  done,  would  never 
have  even  been  attempted. 

It  may  suit  the  policy  of  those  who  live  under  the  same 
system,  to  decry  those  who  do  not;  but  men  are  not  so 
blind  that  they  cannot  see  the  sun  at  noon-day.  One  na 
tion  makes  war  because  its  consul  receives  the  rap  of  a 
fan ;  and  men  of  a  different  origin,  religion  and  habits,  are 
coerced  into  submission  as  the  consequence.  Another 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  299 

nation  burns  towns,  and  destroys  their  people  in  thousands, 
because  their  governors  will  not  consent  to  admit  a  poison 
ous  drug  into  their  territories ;  an  offence  against  the  laws 
of  trade  that  can  only  be  expiated  by  the  ruthless  march 
of  the  conqueror.  Yet  the  ruling  men  of  both  these  com 
munities  affect  a  great  sensibility  when  the  long-slumbering 
young  lion  of  the  West  rouses  himself  in  his  lair,  after 
twenty  years  of  forbearance,  and  stretches  out  a  paw  in 
resentment  for  outrages  that  no  other  nation,  conscious  of 
his  strength,  would  have  endured  for  as  many  months,  be 
cause,  forsooth,  he  is  the  young  lion  of  the  West.  Never 
mind  :  by  the  time  New  Zealand  and  Tahiti  are  brought 
under  the  yoke,  the  Californians  may  be  admitted  to  an 
equal  participation  in  the  rights  of  American  citizens. 

The  governor  was  fully  aware  of  the  danger  he  ran  of 
having  claims,  of  some  sort  or  other,  set  up  to  his  islands, 
if  he  revealed  their  existence ;  and  he  took  the  greatest 
pains  to  conceal  the  fact.  The  arrival  of  the  Rancocus 
was  mentioned  in  the  papers,  as  a  matter  of  course ;  but  it 
was  in  a  way  to  induce  the  reader  to  suppose  she  had  met 
with  her  accident  in  the  midst  of  a  naked  reef,  and  princi 
pally  through  the  loss  of  her  men ;  and  that,  when  a  few 
of  the  last  were  regained,  the  voyage  was  successfully  re 
sumed  and  terminated.  In  that  day,  the  great  discovery 
had  not  been  made  that  men  were  merely  incidents  of 
newspapers;  but  the  world  had  the  folly  to  believe  that 
newspapers  were  incidents  of  society,  and  were  subject  to 
its  rules  and  interests.  Some  respect  was  paid  to  private 
rights,  and  the  reign  of  gossip  had  not  commenced.* 

*  We  hold  in  our  possession  a  curious  document,  the  publication 
of  \vhich  might  rebuke  this  spirit  of  gossip,  and  give  a  salutary 
warning  to  certain  managers  of  the  press,  who  no  sooner  hear  a 
rumour  than  they  think  themselves  justified  in  embalming  it  among 
the  other  truths  of  their  daily  sheets.  The  occurrences  of  life 
brought  us  in  collision,  legally,  with  an  editor ;  and  we  obtained  a 
verdict  against  him.  Dissatisfied  with  defeat,  as  is  apt  to  be  the 
case,  he  applied  for  a  new  trial.  Such  an  application  was  to  be 
sustained  by  affidavits,  and  he  made  his  own,  as  usual.  Now,  in 
this  affidavit,  our  competitor  swore  distinctly  and  unequivocally  to 
certain  alleged  facts  (we  think  to  the  number  of  six),  every  one 
of  which  was  untrue.  Fortunately  for  the  party  implicated,  the 


300  THE  CRATER; 

In  the  last  century,  however,  matters  were  not  carried 
quite  so  far  as  they  are  at  present.  No  part  of  this  com 
munity,  claiming  any  portion  of  respectability,  was  willing 
to  publish  its  own  sense  of  inferiority  so  openly,  as  to  gos 
sip  about  its  fellow-citizens,  for  no  more  direct  admissions 
of  inferiority  can  be  made  than  this  wish  to  comment  on 
the  subject  of  any  one's  private  concerns.  Consequently 
Mark  and  his  islands  escaped.  There  was  no  necessity 
for  his  telling  the  insurers  anything  about  the  Peak,  for 
instance,  and  on  that  part  of  the  subject,  therefore,  he 
wisely  held  his  tongue.  Nothing,  in  short,  was  said  of  any 
colony  at  all.  The  manner  in  which  the  crew  had  been 
driven  away  to  leeward,  and  recovered,  was  told  minutely, 
and  the  whole  process  by  which  the  ship  was  saved.  The 
property  used,  Mark  said  had  been  appropriated  to  his 
wants,  without  going  into  details,  and  the  main  results 
being  so  very  satisfactory,  the  insurers  asked  no  further. 

As  soon  as  off  the  capes,  the  governor  set  about  a  serious 
investigation  of  the  state  of  his  affairs.  In  the  way  of 
cargo,  a  great  many  articles  had  been  laid  in,  which  ex 
perience  told  him  would  be  useful.  He  took  with  him 
such  farming  tools  as  Friend  Abraham  White  had  not 
thought  of  furnishing  to  the  natives  of  Fejee,  and  a  few 
seeds  that  had  been  overlooked  by  that  speculating  philan 
thropist.  There  were  half  a  dozen  more  cows  on  board, 
as  well  as  an  improved  breed  of  hogs.  Mark  carried  out, 
also,  a  couple  of  mares,  for,  while  many  horses  could  never 
be  much  needed  in  his  islands,  a  few  would  always  be  ex 
ceedingly  useful.  Oxen  were  much  wanted,  but  one  of 
his  new  colonists  had  yoked  his  cows,  and  it  was  thought 

mutter  sworn  to  was  purely  ad  captandum  stuff,  and,  in  a  legal 
sense,  not  pertinent  to  the  issue.  This  prevented  it  from  being 
perjury  in  law.  Still,  it  was  all  untrue,  and  nothing  was  easier 
than  to  show  it.  Now,  we  do  not  doubt  that  the  person  thus 
swearing  believed  all  that  he  swore  to,  or  he  would  not  have  had 
the  extreme  folly  to  expose  himself  as  he  did ;  but  he  was  so  much 
in  the  habit  of  publishing  gossip  in  his  journal,  that,  when  an  oc 
casion  arrived,  he  did  not  hesitate  about  swearing  to  what  he  had 
read  in  other  journals,  without  taking  the  trouble  to  inquire  if  it 
were  true !  One  of  these  days  we  may  lay  all  this,  along  with 
much  other  similar  proof  of  the  virtue  there  is  in  gossip,  so  plainly 
before  the  world,  that  he  who  runs  may  read. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  301 

they  might  be  made  useful,  in  a  moderate  degree,  until 
their  stoutei  substitutes  could  be  reared.  Carts  and  wa 
gons  were  provided  in  sufficient  numbers.  A  good  stock 
of  iron  in  bars  was  laid  in,  in  addition  to  that  which  was 
wrought  into  nails,  and  other  useful  articles.  Several 
thousand  dollars  in  coin  were  als^p  provided,  being  princi 
pally  in  small  pieces,  including  copper.  But  all  the  emi 
grants  took  more  or  less  specie  with  them. 

A  good  deal  of  useful  lumber  was  stowed  in  the  lower 
hold,  though  the  mill  by  this  time  furnished  a  pretty  good 
home  supply.  The  magazine  was  crammed  with  ammuni 
tion,  and  the  governor  had  purchased  four  light  field-guns, 
two  three-pounders  and  two  twelve-pound  howitzers,  with 
their  equipments.  He  had  also  brought  six  long  iron 
twelves,  ship-guns,  with  their  carriages  &c.  The  last  he 
intended  for  his  batteries,  the  carronades  being  too  light 
for  steady  work,  and  throwing  their  shot  too  wild  for  a 
long  range.  The  last  could  be  mounted  on  board  the  dif 
ferent  vessels.  The  Rancocus,  also,  had  an  entire  new 
armament,  having  left  all  her  old  guns  but  two  behind 
her.  Two  hundred  muskets  were  laid  in,  with  fifty  brace 
of  pistols.  In  a  word,  as  many  arms  were  provided  as  it 
was  thought  could,  in  any  emergency,  become  necessary. 

But  it  was  the  human  portion  of  his  cargo  that  the 
governor,  rightly  enough,  deemed  to  be  of  the  greatest 
importance.  Much  care  had  been  bestowed  on  the  selec 
tion,  which  had  given  all  concerned  in  it  not  a  little  trou 
ble.  Morals  were  the  first  interest  attended  to.  No  one 
was  received  but  those  who  bore  perfectly  good  characters. 
The  next  thing  was  to  make  a  proper  division  among  the 
various  trades  and  pursuits  of  life.  There  were  carpen 
ters,  masons,  blacksmiths,  tailors,  shoemakers,  &,c.,  or,  one 
of  each,  and  sometimes  more.  Every  man  was  married, 
the  only  exceptions  being  in  the  cases  of  younger  brothers 
and  sisters,  of  whom  about  a  dozen  were  admitted  along 
with  their  relatives.  The  whole  of  the  ships'  betwixt 
decks  was  fitted  up  for  the  reception  of  these  emigrants, 
who  were  two  hundred  and  seven  in  number,  besides  chil 
dren.  Of  the  last  there  were  more  than  fifty,  but  they 
were  principally  of  an  age  to  allow  of  their  being  put  into 
holes  and  corners. 
26 


302  THE   CRATER; 

Mark  Woolston  was  much  too  sensible  a  man  to  fall  into 
any  of  the  modern  absurdities  on  the  subject  of  equality, 
and  a  community  of  interests.  One  or  two  individuals, 
even  in  that  day,  had  wished  to  accompany  him,  who  were 
for  forming  an  association  in  which  all  property  should  be 
shared  in  common,  and  in  which  nothing  was  to  be  done 
but  that  which  was  right.  Mark  had  not  the  least  objec 
tion  in  the  world  to  the  last  proposition,  and  would  have 
been  glad  enough  to  see  it  carried  out  to  the  letter,  though 
he  differed  essentially  with  the  applicants,  as  to  the  mode 
of  achieving  so  desirable  an  end.  He  was  of  opinion  that 
civilization  could  not  exist  without  property,  or  property 
without  a  direct  personal  interest  in  both  its  accumulation 
and  its  preservation.  They,  on  the  other  hand,  were  car 
ried  away  by  the  crotchet  that  community-labour  was  better 
than  individual  labour,  and  that  a  hundred  men  would  be 
happier  and  better  off  with  their  individualities  compressed 
into  one,  than  by  leaving  them  in  a  hundred  subdivisions,  as 
they  had  been  placed  by  nature.  The  theorists  might  have 
been  right,  had  it  been  in  their  power  to  compress  a  hun 
dred  individuals  into  one,  but  it  was  not.  After  all  their 
efforts,  they  would  still  remain  a  hundred  individuals,  merely 
banded  together  under  more  restraints,  and  with  less  liberty 
than  are  common. 

Of  all  sophisms,  that  is  the  broadest  which  supposes  per 
sonal  liberty  is  extended  by  increasing  the  power  of  the 
community.  Individuality  is  annihilated  in  a  thousand 
things,  by  the  community-power  that  already  exists  in  this 
country,  where  persecution  often  follows  from  a  man's 
thinking  and  acting  differently  from  his  neighbours,  though 
the  law  professes  to  protect  him.  The  reason  why  this 
power  becomes  so  very  formidable,  and  is  often  so  oppres 
sively  tyrannical  in  its  exhibition,  is  very  obvious.  In 
countries  where  the  power  is  in  the  hands  of  the  few,  public 
sympathy  often  sustains  the  man  who  resists  its  injustice; 
but  no  public  sympathy  can  sustain  him  who  is  oppressed 
by  the  public  itself.  This  oppression  does  not  often  exhibit, 
itself  in  the  form  of  law,  but  rather  in  its  denial.  He,  who 
has  a  clamour  raised  against  him  by  numbers,  appeals  in 
vain  to  numbers  for  justice,  though  his  claim  may  be  clear 
as  the  sun  at  noon-day.  The  divided  responsibility  of  bo- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  303 

dies  of  men  prevents  anything  like  the  control  of  con 
science,  and  the  most  ruthless  wrongs  are  committed, 
equally  without  reflection  and  without  remorse. 

Mark  Woolston  had  thought  too  much  on  the  subject,  to 
be  the  dupe  of  any  of  these  visionary  theories.  Instead  of 
fancying  that  men  never  knew  anything  previously  to  the 
last  ten  years  of  the  eighteenth  century,  he  was  of  the 
opinion  of  the  wisest  man  who  ever  lived,  that  '  there  was 
nothing  new  under  the  sun.'  That  '  circumstances  might 
alter  cases'  he  was  willing  enough  to  allow,  nor  did  he 
intend  to  govern  the  crater  by  precisely  the  same  laws  as 
he  would  govern  Pennsylvania,  or  Japan ;  but  he  well  under 
stood,  nevertheless,  that  certain  great  moral  truths  existed 
as  the  law  of  the  human  family,  and  that  they  were  not  to 
be  set  aside  by  visionaries;  and  least  of  all,  with  impunity. 

Everything  connected  with  the  colony  was  strictly  practi 
cal.  The  decision  of  certain  points  had  unquestionably  given 
the  governor  trouble,  though  he  got  along  with  them  pretty 
well,  on  the  whole.  A  couple  of  young  lawyers  had  desired 
to  go,  but  he  had  the  prudence  to  reject  them.  Law,  as  a 
science,  is  a  very  useful  study,  beyond  a  question;  but 
the  governor,  rightly  enough,  fancied  that  his  people  could 
do  without  so  much  science  for  a  few  years  longer.  Then 
another  doctor  volunteered  his  services.  Mark  remem 
bered  the  quarrels  between  his  father  and  his  father-in-law, 
and  thought  it  better  to  die  under  one  theory  than  under 
two.  As  regards  a  clergyman,  Mark  had  greater  diffi 
culty.  The  question  of  sect  was  not  as  seriously  debated 
half  a  century  ago  as  it  is  to-day ;  still  it  was  debated. 
Bristol  had  a  very  ancient  society,  of  the  persuasion  of 
the  Anglican  church,  and  Mark's  family  belonged  to  it. 
Bridget,  however,  was  a  Presbyterian,  and  no  small  por 
tion  of  the  new  colonists  were  what  is  called  Wet-Quakers; 
that  is,  Friends  who  are  not  very  particular  in  their  opi 
nions  or  observances.  Now,  religion  often  caused  more 
feuds  than  anything  else ;  still  it  was  impossible  to  have  a 
priest  for  every  persuasion,  and  one  ought  to  suffice  for  the 
whole  colo.ny.  The  question  was  of  what  sect  should  that 
one  clergyman  be?  So  many  prejudices  were  to  be  con 
sulted,  that  the  governor  was  about  to  abandon  the  project 
in  despair,  when  accident  determined  the  point.  Among 


304  THE  CRATER; 

Heaton's  relatives  was  a  young  man  of  the  name  of  Horn 
blower,  no  bad  appellation,  by  the  way,  for  one  who  had 
to  sound  so  many  notes  of  warning,  who  had  received 
priest's  orders  from  the  hands  of  the  well-known  Dr. 
White,  so  long  the  presiding  Bishop  of  America,  and 
whose  constitution  imperiously  demanded  a  milder  climate 
than  that  in  which  he  then  lived.  As  respects  him}  it  be 
came  a  question  purely  of  humanity,  the  divine  being  too 
poor  to  travel  on  his  own  account,  and  he  was  received  on 
board  the  Rancocus,  with  his  wife,  his  sister,  and  two 
children,  that  he  might  have  the  benefit  of  living  within 
the  tropics.  The  matter  was  fully  explained  to  the  other 
emigrants,  who  could  not  raise  objections  if  they  would, 
but  who  really  were  not  disposed  to  do  so  in  a  case  of 
such  obvious  motives.  A  good  portion  of  them,  probably, 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  Episcopalian  ministrations 
were  better  than  none,  though,  to  own  the  truth,  the 
liturgy  gave  a  good  deal  of  scandal  to  a  certain  portion  of 
their  number.  Reading  prayers  was  so  profane  a  thing, 
that  these  individuals  could  scarcely  consent  to  be  present 
at  such  a  vain  ceremony ;  nor  was  the  discontent,  on  this 
preliminary  point,  fully  disposed  of  until  the  governor  once 
asked  the  principal  objector  how  he  got  along  with  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  which  was  not  only  written  and  printed, 
but  which  usually  was  committed  to  memory !  Notwith 
standing  this  difficulty,  the  emigrants  did  get  along  with  it 
without  many  qualms,  and  most  of  them  dropped  quietly 
into  the  habit  of  worshipping  agreeably  to  a  liturgy,  just 
as  if  it  were  not  the  terrible  profanity  that  some  of  them 
had  imagined.  In  this  way,  many  of  our  most  intense  pre 
judices  get  lost  in  new  communications. 

It  is  not  our  intention  to  accompany  the  Rancocus, 
day  by  day,  in  her  route.  She  touched  at  Rio,  and 
sailed  again  at  the  end  of  eight  and  forty  hours.  The 
passage  round  the  Horn  was  favourable,  and  having  got 
well  to  the  westward,  away  the  ship  went  for  her  port. 
One  of  the  cows  got  down,  and  died  before  it  could  be  re 
lieved,  in  a  gale  off  the  cape ;  but  no  other  accident  worth 
mentioning  occurred.  A  child  died  with  convulsions,  in 
consequence  of  teething,  a  few  days  later  ;  but  this  did  not 
diminish  the  number  on  board,  as  three  were  born  the 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  305 

same  week.  The  ship  had  now  been  at  sea  one  hundred 
and  sixty  days,  counting  the  time  passed  at  Rio,  and  a 
general  impatience  to  arrive  pervaded  the  vessel.  If  the 
truth  must  be  said,  some  of  the  emigrants  began  to  doubt 
the  governor's  ability  to  find  his  islands  again,  though  none 
doubted  of  their  existence.  The  Kannakas,  however,  de 
clared  that  they  began  to  smell  home,  and  it  is  odd  enough, 
that  this  declaration,  coming  as  it  did  from  ignorant  men, 
who  made  it  merely  on  a  fanciful  suggestion,  obtained 
more  credit  with  most  of  the  emigrants,  than  all  the  gover 
nor's  instruments  and  observations. 

One  day,  a  little  before  noon  it  was,  Mark  appeared  on 
deck  with  his  quadrant,  and  as  he  cleaned  the  glasses  of 
the  instrument,  he  announced  his  conviction  that  the  ship 
would  shortly  make  the  group  of  the  crater.     A  current 
had  set  him  further  north  than  he  intended  to  go,  but 
having  hauled  up  to  southwest,  he  waited  only  for  noon  to 
ascertain  his  latitude,  to  be  certain  of  his  position.     As 
the  governor  maintained  a  proper  distance  from  his  people, 
and  was  not  in  the  habit  of  making  unnecessary  commu 
nications  to  them,  his  present  frankness  told  for  so  much 
the  more,  and  it  produced  a  very  general  excitement  in  the 
ship.     All  eyes  were  on  the  look-out  for  land,  greatly  in 
creasing  the  chances  of  its  being  shortly  seen.     The  ob 
servation  came  at  noon,  as  is  customary,  and  the  governor 
found  he  was  about  thirty  miles  to  the  northward  of  the 
group  of  islands  he  was  seeking.     By  his  calculation,  he 
was  still  to  the  eastward  of  it,  and  he  hauled  up,  hoping  to 
fall  in  with  the  land  well  to  windward.     After  standing  on 
three  hours  in  the  right  direction,  the  look-outs  from  the 
cross-trees  declared  no  land  was  visible  ahead.     For  one 
moment  the  dreadful  apprehension  of  the  group's  having 
sunk  under  another  convulsion  of  nature  crossed  Mark's 
mind,  but  he  entertained  that  notion  for  a  minute  only. 
Then  came  the  cry  of  "  sail  ho !"  to  cheer  everybody,  and 
to  give  them  something  else  to  think  of. 

This  was  the  first  vessel  the  Rancocus  had  seen  since 
she  left  Rio.  It  was  to  windward,  and  appeared  to  be 
standing  down  before  the  wind.  In  an  hour's  time  the 
two  vessels  were  near  enough  to  each  other  to  enable  the 
glass  to  distinguish  objects;  and  the  quarter-deck,  on  board 


306  THE   CRATER; 

the  Rancocus,  were  all  engaged  in  looking  at  the  stran 
ger. 

"  'Tis  the  Mermaid,"  said  Mark  to  Betts,  "  and  it's  all 
right.  Though  what  that  craft  can  be  doing  here  to  wind 
ward  of  the  islands  is  more  than  I  can  imagine !" 

"  Perhaps,  sir,  they's  a  cruising  arter  us,"  answered 
Bob.  "  This  is  about  the  time  they  ought  to  be  expectin' 
on  us ;  and  who  knows  but  Madam  Woolston  and  Friend 
Marthy  may  not  have  taken  it  into  their  heads  to  come  out 
a  bit  to  see  arter  their  lawful  husbands?" 

The  governor  smiled  at  this  conceit,  but  continued  his 
observations  in  silence. 

"  She  behaves  very  strangely,  Betts,"  Mark,  at  length, 
said.  "  Just  take  a  look  at  her.  She  yaws  like  a  galliot 
in  a  gale,  and  takes  the  whole  road  like  a  drunken  man. 
There  can  be  no  one  at  the  helm." 

"And  how  lubberly,  sir,  her  canvas  is  set !  Just  look  at 
that  main-taw-sail,  sir ;  one  of  the  sheets  isn't  home  by  a 
fathom,  while  the  yard  is  braced  in,  till  it 's  almost  aback !" 

The  governor  walked  the  deck  for  five  minutes  in  in 
tense  thought,  though  occasionally  he  stopped  to  look  ai 
the  brig,  now  within  a  league  of  them.  Then  he  suddenly 
called  out  to  Bob,  to  "  see  all  clear  for  action,  and  to  ger 
everything  ready  to  go  to  quarters." 

This  order  set  every  one  in  motion.  The  women  ana 
children  were  hurried  below,  and  the  men,  who  had  been 
constantly  exercised,  now,  for  five  months,  took  their  sta 
tions  with  the  regularity  of  old  seamen.  The  guns  were 
cast  loose — ten  eighteen-pound  carronades  and  two  nines, 
the  new  armament — cartridges  were  got  ready,  shot  placed 
at  hand,  and  all  the  usual  dispositions  for  combat  were 
made.  While  this  was  doing,  the  two  vessels  were  fast 
drawing  nearer  to  each  other,  and  were  soon  within  gun 
shot.  But,  no  one  on  board  the  Rancocus  knew  what  to 
make  of  the  evolutions  of  the  Mermaid.  Most  of  her  or 
dinary  square-sails  were  set,  though  not  one  of  them  all 
was  sheeted  home,  or  well  hoisted.  An  attempt  had  been 
made  to  lay  the  yards  square,  but  one  yard-arm  was  braced 
in  too  far,  another  not  far  enough,  and  nothing  like  order 
appeared  to  have  prevailed  at  the  sail-trimming.  But,  the 
conning  of  the  brig  was  the  most  remarkable.  Her  general 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  307 

course  would  seem  to  be  dead  before  the  wind ;  but  she 
yawed  incessantly,  and  often  so  broadly,  as  to  catch  some 
of  her  light  sails  aback.  Most  vessels  take  a  good  dear;  G? 
room  in  running  down  before  the  wind,  and  in  a  sw<;K ; 
but  the  Mermaid  took  a  great  deal  more  than  was  cun> 
mon,  and  could  scarce  be  said  to  look  any  way  in  par 
ticular.  All  this  the  governor  observed,  as  the  vessels 
approached  nearer  and  nearer,  as  well  as  the  movements 
of  those  of  the  crew  who  showed  themselves  in  the  rig 
ging. 

"  Clear  away  a  bow-gun,"  cried  Mark,  to  Betts — "  some 
thing  dreadful  must  have  happened ;  that  brig  is  in  posses 
sion  of  the  savages,  who  do  not  know  how  to  handle  her  !" 

This  announcement  produced  a  stir  on  board  the  Ran- 
cocus,  as  may  well  be  imagined.  If  the  savages  had  the 
brig,  they  probably  had  the  group  also;  and  what  had  be 
come  of  the  colonists?  The  next  quarter  of  an  hour  was 
one  of  the  deepest  expectation  with  all  in  the  ship,  and  of 
intense  agony  with  Mark.  Betts  was  greatly  disturbed 
also ;  nor  would  it  have  been  safe  for  one  of  Waally's  men 
to  have  been  within  reach  of  his  arm,  just  then.  Couid  it 
be  possible  that  Ooroony  had  yielded  to  temptation  and 
played  them  false?  The  governor  could  hardly  believe  it; 
and,  as  for  Betts,  he  protested  loudly  it  could  not  be  so. 

"  Is  that  bow-gun  ready  ?"  demanded  the  governor. 

"Ay,  ay,  sir ;  all  ready." 

"  Fire,  but  elevate  well — we  will  only  frighten  them,  at 
first.  Wo  betide  them,  if  they  resist." 

Betts  did  fire,  and  to  the  astonishment  of  everybody,  the 
brig  returned  a  broadside  !  But  resistance  ceased  with  this 
one  act  of  energy,  if  it  could  be  so  termed.  Although  five 
guns  were  actually  fired,  and  nearly  simultaneously,  no 
aim  was  even  attempted.  The  shot  all  flew  off  at  a  tan 
gent  from  the  position  of  the  ship ;  and  no  harm  was  done 
to  any  but  the  savages  themselves,  of  whom  three  or  four 
were  injured  by  the  recoils.  From  the  moment  the  noise 
and  smoke  were  produced,  everything  like  order  ceased 
on  board  the  brig,  which  was  filled  with  savages.  The 
vessel  broached  to,  and  the  sails  caught  aback.  All  this 
time,  the  Rancocus  was  steadily  drawing  nearer,  with  an 
intent  to  board ;  but,  unwilling  to  expose  his  people,  most 


308  THE  CRATER; 

of  whom  were  unpractised  in  strife,  in  a  hand-to-hand  con« 
flict  with  ferocious  savages,  the  governor  ordered  a  gun 
loaded  with  grape  to  be  discharged  into  the  brig.  This 
decided  the  affair  at  once.  Half  a  dozen  were  killed  or 
wounded ;  some  ran  below ;  a  few  took  refuge  in  the  top  ; 
but  most,  without  the  slightest  hesitation,  jumped  over 
board.  To  the  surprise  of  all  who  saw  them,  the  men  in 
the  water  began  to  swim  directly  to  windward ;  a  circum 
stance  which  indicated  that  either  land  or  canoes  were  to 
be  found  in  that  quarter  of  the  ocean.  Seeing  the  state 
of  things  on  board  the  brig,  Mark  luifed  up  under  her 
counter,  and  laid  her  aboard.  In  a  minute,  he  and  twenty 
chosen  men  were  on  her  decks;  in  another,  the  vessels 
were  again  clear  of  each  other,  and  the  Mermaid  under 
command. 

No  sooner  did  the  governor  discharge  his  duties  as  a 
seaman,  than  he  passed  below.  In  the  cabin  he  found  Mr. 
Saunders,  (or  Captain  Saunders,  as  he  was  called  by  the 
colonists,)  bound  hand  and  foot.  His  steward  was  in  the 
same  situation,  and  Bigelow  was  found,  also  a  prisoner,  in 
the  steerage.  These  were  all  the  colonists  on  board,  and 
all  but  two  who  had  been  on  board,  when  the  vessel  was 
taken. 

Captain  Saunders  could  tell  the  governor  very  little  more 
than  he  saw  with  his  own  eyes.  One  fact  of  importance, 
however,  he  could  and  did  communicate,  which  was  this : 
Instead  of  being  to  windward  of  the  crater,  as  Mark  sup 
posed,  he  was  to  leeward  of  it ;  the  currents  no  doubt 
having  set  the  ship  to  the  westward  faster  than  had  been 
thought.  Rancocus  Island  would  have  been  made  by  sun 
set,  had  the  ship  stood  on  in  the  course  she  was  steering 
when  she  made  the  Mermaid. 

But  the  most  important  fact  was  the  safety  of  the  fe 
males.  They  were  all  at  the  Peak,  where  they  had  lived 
for  the  last  six  months,  or  ever  since  the  death  of  the  good 
Ooroony  had  again  placed  Waally  in  the  ascendant. 
Ooroony's  son  was  overturned  immediately  on  the  decease 
of  the  father,  who  died  a  natural  death,  and  Waally  disre 
garded  the  taboo,  which  he  persuaded  his  people  could 
have  no  sanctity  as  applied  to  the  whites.  The  plunder  of 
these  last,  with  the  possession  of  the  treasure  of  iron  and 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  309 

copper  that  was  to  be  found  in  their  vessels,  had  indeed 
been  the  principal  bribe  with  which  the  turbulent  and 
ambitious  chief  regained  his  power.  The  war  did  not 
break  out,  however,  as  soon  as  Waally  had  effected  the 
revolution  in  his  own  group.  On  the  contrary,  that  wily 
politician  had  made  so  many  protestations  of  friendship 
after  that  event,  which  he  declared  to  be  necessary  to  the 
peace  of  his  island ;  had  collected  so  much  sandal-wood, 
and  permitted  it  to  be  transferred  to  the  crater,  where  a 
cargo  was  already  stored ;  and  had  otherwise  made  so 
many  amicable  demonstrations,  as  completely  to  deceive 
the  colonists.  No  one  had  anticipated  an  invasion ;  but, 
on  the  contrary,  preparations  were  making  at  the  Peak  for 
the  reception  of  Mark,  whose  return  had  now  been  ex 
pected  daily  for  a  fortnight. 

The  Mermaid  had  brought  over  a  light  freight  of  wood 
from  Betto's  group,  and  had  discharged  at  the  crater.  This 
done,  she  had  sailed  with  the  intention  of  going  out  to 
cruise  for  the  Rancocus,  to  carry  the  news  of  the  colony, 
all  of  which  was  favourable,  with  the  exception  of  the 
death  of  Ooroony  and  the  recent  events ;  but  was  lying  in 
the  roads,  outside  of  everything  —  the  Western  Roads,  as 
they  were  called,  or  those  nearest  to  the  other  group  — 
waiting  for  the  appointed  hour  of  sailing,  which  was  to  be 
the  very  morning  of  the  day  in  which  she  was  fallen  in 
with  by  the  governor.  Her  crew  consisted  only  of  Cap 
tain  Saunders,  Bigelow,  the  cook  and  steward,  and  two 
of  the  people  engaged  at  Canton  —  one  of  whom  was  a 
very  good-for-nothing  Chinaman.  The  two  last  had  the 
look-out,  got  drunk,  and  permitted  a  fleet  of  hostile  canoes 
to  get  alongside  in  the  dark,  being  knocked  on  the  head 
and  tossed  overboard,  as  the  penalty  of  this  neglect  of 
duty.  The  others  owed  their  lives  to  the  circumstance  of 
being  taken  in  their  sleep,  when  resistance  was  out  of  the 
question.  In  the  morning,  the  brig's  cable  was  cut,  sail 
was  set,  after  a  fashion,  and  an  attempt  was  made  to  carry 
the  vessel  over  to  Betto's  group.  It  is  very  questionable 
whether  she  ever  could  have  arrived ;  but  that  point  was 
disposed  of  by  the  opportune  appearance  of  the  Ran 
cocus. 

Saunders  could  communicate  nothing  of  the  subsequent 


310  THE  CRATER; 

course  of  the  invaders.  He  had  been  kept  below  the  whole 
time,  and  did  not  even  know  how  many  canoes  composed 
the  fleet.  The  gang  in  possession  of  the  Mermaid  was 
understood,  however,  to  be  but  a  very  small  part  of  Waally's 
force  present,  that  chief  leading  in  person.  By  certain 
half-comprehended  declarations  of  his  conquerors,  Captain 
Saunders  understood  that  the  rest  had  entered  the  channel, 
with  a  view  to  penetrate  to  the  crater,  where  Socrates, 
Unus  and  Wattles  were  residing,  with  their  wives  and  fami 
lies,  and  where  no  greater  force  was  left  when  the  Mer 
maid  sailed.  The  property  there,  however,  was  out  of  all 
proportion  in  value  to  the  force  of  those  whose  business  it 
was  to  take  care  of  it.  In  consequence  of  the  Rancocus's 
removal,  several  buildings  had  been  constructed  on  the 
Reef,  and  one  house  of  very  respectable  dimensions  had 
been  put  up  on  the  Summit.  It  is  true,  these  houses  were 
not  very  highly  finished ;  but  they  were  of  great  value  to 
persons  in  the  situation  of  the  colonists.  Most  of  the  hogs, 
moreover,  were  still  rooting  and  tearing  up  the  thousand- 
acre  prairie ;  where,  indeed,  they  roamed  very  much  in  a 
state  of  nature.  Socrates  occasionally  carried  to  them  a 
boat-load  of  '  truck'  from  the  crater,  in  order  to  keep  up 
amicable  relations  with  them ;  but  they  were  little  better 
than  so  many  wild  animals,  in  one  sense,  though  there  had 
not  yet  been  time  materially  to  change  their  natures.  In 
the  whole,  including  young  and  old,  there  must  have  been 
near  two  hundred  of  these  animals  altogether,  their  in 
crease  being  very  rapid.  Then,  a  large  amount  of  the 
stores  sent  from  Canton,  including  most  of  the  iron,  was 
in  store  at  the  crater;  all  of  which  would  lay  at  the  mercy 
of  Waally's  men ;  for  the  resistance  to  be  expected  from 
the  three  in  possession,  could  not  amount  to  much. 

The  governor  was  prompt  enough  in  his  decision,  as 
soon  as  he  understood  the  facts  of  the  case.  The  first 
thing  was  to  bring  the  vessels  close  by  the  wind,  and  to 
pass  as  near  as  possible  over  the  ground  where  the  swim 
mers  were  to  be  found ;  for  Mark  could  not  bear  the  idea 
of  abandoning  a  hundred  of  his  fellow-creatures  in  the 
midst  of  the  ocean,  though  they  were  enemies  and  savages. 
By  making  short  stretches,  and  tacking  two  or  three  times, 
the  colonists  found  themselves  in  the  midst  of  the  swim- 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  311 

mers;  not  one  in  ten  of  whom  would  probably  ever  have 
reached  the  land,  but  for  the  humanity  of  their  foe.  Along 
side  of  the  Mermaid  were  three  or  four  canoes ;  and  these 
were  cast  adrift  at  the  right  moment,  without  any  parley 
ing.  The  Indians  were  quick  enough  at  understanding  the 
meaning  of  this^,  and  swam  to  the  canoes  from  all  sides, 
though  still  anxious  to  get  clear  of  the  vessels.  On  board 
the  last  canoe  the  governor  put  all  his  prisoners,  when  he 
deemed  himself  happily  quit  of  the  whole  gang. 

There  were  three  known  channels  by  which  the  Ranco- 
cus  could  be  carried  quite  up  to  the  crater.  Mark  chose 
that  which  came  in  from  the  northward,  both  because  it 
was  the  nearest,  and  because  he  could  Jay  his  course  in  it, 
without  tacking,  for  most  of  the  way.  Acquainted  now 
with  his  position,  Mark  had  no  difficulty  in  finding  the 
entrance  of  this  channel.  Furnishing  the  Mermaid  with 
a  dozen  hands,  she  was  sent  to  the  western  roads,  to  inter 
cept  Waally's  fleet,  should  it  be  coming  out  with  the  booty. 
In  about  an  hour  after  the  Rancocus  altered  her  course, 
she  made  the  land;  and,  just  as  the  sun  was  setting,  she 
got  so  close  in  as  to  be  able  to  anchor  in  the  northern 
roads,  where  there  was  not  only  a  lee,  but  good  holding- 
ground.  Here  the  ship  passed  the  night,  the  governor  not 
liking  to  venture  into  the  narrow  passages  in  the  dark. 


CHAPTEE  XXI. 

"  Fancy  can  charm  and  feeling  bless 

With  sweeter  hours  than  fashion  knows ; 
There  is  no  calmer  quietness, 

Than  home  around  the  bosom  throws." 

PERCIVAI. 

ALTHOUGH  the  governor  deemed  it  prudent  to  anchor  for 
the  night,  he  did  not  neglect  the  precaution  of  reconnoi 
tring.  Betts  was  sent  towards  the  Reef,  in  a  boat  well 
armed  and  manned,  in  order  to  ascertain  the  state  of  things 
iu  that  quarter.  His  instructions  directed  him  to  push  for- 


312  THE  CRATER; 

ward  as  far  as  he  could,  and  if  possible  to  hold  some  sort 
of  communication  with  Socrates,  who  might  now  be  consi 
dered  as  commander  at  the  point  assailed. 

Fortunate  was  it  that  the  governor  bethought  him  of  this 
measure.  As  Betts  had  the  ship's  launch,  which  carried  two 
lugg-sails,  his  progress  was  both  easy  and  rapid,  and  he 
actually  got  in  sight  of  the  Reef  before  midnight.  To  his 
astonishment,  all  seemed  to  be  tranquil,  and  Betts  at  first 
believed  that  the  savages  had  completed  their  work  and 
departed.  Being  a  bold  fellow,  however,  a  distant  recon 
noitring  did  not  satisfy  him;  and  on  he  went,  until  his 
boat  fairly  lay  alongside  of  the  natural  quay  of  the  Reef 
itself.  Here  he  landed,  and  marched  towards  the  entrance 
of  the  crater.  The  gate  was  negligently  open,  and  on 
entering  the  spacious  area,  the  men  found  all  quiet,  with 
out  any  indications  of  recent  violence.  Betts  knew  that 
those  who  dwelt  in  this  place,  usually  preferred  the  Sum 
mit  for  sleeping,  and  he  ascended  to  one  of  the  huts  that 
had  been  erected  there.  Here  he  found  the  whole  of  the 
little  garrison  of  the  group,  buried  in  sleep,  and  totally 
without  any  apprehension  of  the  danger  which  menaced 
them.  As  it  now  appeared,  Waally's  men  had  not  yet 
shown  themselves,  and  Socrates  knew  nothing  at  all  of 
what  had  happened  to  the  brig. 

Glad  enough  was  the  negro  to  shake  hands  with  Betts, 
and  to  hear  that  Master  Mark  was  so  near  at  hand,  with  a 
powerful  reinforcement.  The  party  already  arrived  might 
indeed  be  termed  the  last,  for  the  governor  had  sent  with 
his  first  officer,  on  this  occasion,  no  less  than  five-and- 
tvventy  men,  each  completely  armed.  With  such  a  garri 
son,  Betts  deemed  the  crater  safe,  and  he  sent  back  the 
launch,  with  four  seamen  in  it,  to  report  the  condition  in 
which  he  had  found  matters,  and  to  communicate  all  else 
that  he  had  learned.  This  done,  he  turned  his  attention 
to  the  defences  of  the  place. 

According  to  Socrates'  account,  no  great  loss  in  pro 
perty  would  be  likely  to  occur,  could  the  colonists  make 
good  the  Reef  against  their  invaders.  The  Abraham  was 
over  at  the  Peak,  safe  enough  in  the  cove,  as  was  the  Ne- 
shamony  and  several  of  the  boats,  only  two  or  three  of  the 
smaller  of  the  last  being  with  him.  The  hogs  and  cows 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  313 

were  most  exposed,  though  nearly  half  of  the  stock  was 
now  habitually  kept  on  the  Peak.  Still,  a  couple  of  hun 
dred  hogs  were  on  the  prairie,  as  were  no  less  than  eight 
horned  cattle,  including  calves.  The  loss  of  the  last  would 
be  greatly  felt,  and  it  was  much  to  be  feared,  since  the 
creatures  were  very  gentle,  and  might  be  easily  caught. 
Betts,  however,  had  fewer  apprehensions  touching  the  cattle 
than  for  the  hogs,  since  the  latter  might  be  slain  with  arrows, 
while  he  was  aware  that  Waally  wished  to  obtain  the  first 
alive. 

Agreeably  to  the  accounts  of  Socrates,  the  progress  of 
vegetation  had  been  very  great  throughout  the  entire  group. 
Grass  grew  wherever  the  seed  was  sown,  provided  anything 
like  soil  existed,  and  the  prairie  was  now  a  vast  range,  most 
of  which  was  green,  and  all  of  which  was  firm  enough  to 
bear  a  hoof.  The  trees,  of  all  sorts,  were  flourishing  also, 
and  Betts  was  assured  he  would  not  know  the  group  again 
when  he  came  to  see  it  by  day-light.  All  this  was  pleasant 
intelligence,  at  least,  to  the  eager  listeners  among  the  new 
colonists,  who  had  now  been  so  long  on  board  ship,  that 
anything  in  the  shape  of  terra  Jirma,  and  of  verdure  ap 
peared  to  them  like  paradise.  But  Betts  had  too  many 
things  to  think  of,  just  then,  to  give  much  heed  to  the 
eulogium  of  Socrates,  and  he  soon  bestowed  all  his  atten 
tion  on  the  means  of  defence. 

As  there  was  but  one  way  of  approaching  the  crater, 
unless  by  water,  and  that  was  along  the  hog  pasture  and 
across  the  plank  bridge,  Bob  felt  the  prudence  of  imme 
diately  taking  possession  of  the  pass.  He  ordered  Socrates 
to  look  to  the  gate,  where  he  stationed  a  guard,  and  went 
himself,  with  ten  men,  to  make  sure  of  the  bridge.  It  was 
true,  Waally's  men  could  swim,  and  would  not  be  very  apt 
to  pause  long  at  the  basin ;  but,  it  would  be  an  advantage 
to  fight  them  while  in  the  water,  that  ought  not  to  be 
thrown  away.  The  carronades  were  all  loaded,  moreover ; 
and  these  precautions  taken,  and  sentinels  posted,  Betts 
suffered  his  men  to  sleep  on  their  arms,  if  sleep  they  could. 
Their  situation  was  so  novel,  that  few  availed  themselves 
of  the  privilege,  though  their  commanding  officer,  himself, 
was  soon  snoring  most  musically. 

As  might  have  been  expected,  Waally  made  his  assault 
27 


314  THE  CRATER; 

just  as  the  day  appeared.  Before  that  time,  however,  the 
launch  had  got  back  to  the  ship,  and  the  latter  was  under 
way,  coming  fast  towards  the  crater.  Unknown  to  all, 
though  anticipated  by  Mark,  the  Mermaid  had  entered  the 
western  passage,  and  was  beating  up  through  it,  closing 
fast  also  on  Waally's  rear.  Such  was  the  state  of  things, 
when  the  yell  of  the  assailants  was  heard. 

Waally  made  his  first  push  for  the  bridge,  expecting  to 
find  it  unguarded,  and  hoping  to  cross  it  unresisted.  He 
knew  that  the  ship  was  gone,  and  no  longer  dreaded  her 
fire ;  but  he  was  fully  aware  that  the  Summit  had  its  guns, 
and  he  wished  to  seize  them  while  his  men  were  still  im 
pelled  by  the  ardour  of  a  first  onset.  Those  formidable 
engines  of  war  were  held  in  the  most  profound  respect  by 
all  his  people,  and  Waally  knew  the  importance  of  success 
in  a  rapid  movement.  He  had  gleaned  so  much  informa 
tion  concerning  the  state  of  the  Reef,  that  he  expected  no 
great  resistance,  fully  believing  that,  now  he  had  seized 
the  Mermaid,  his  enemies  would  be  reduced  in  numbers 
to  less  than  half-a-dozen.  In  all  this,  he  was  right  enough  ; 
and  there  can  be  no  question  that  Socrates  and  his  whole 
party,  together  with  the  Reef,  and  for  that  matter,  the 
entire  group,  would  have  fallen  into  his  hands,  but  for  the 
timely  arrival  of  the  reinforcement.  The  yell  arose  when 
it  was  ascertained  that  the  bridge  was  drawn  in,  and  it 
was  succeeded  by  a  volley  from  the  guard  posted  near  it, 
on  the  Reef.  This  commenced  the  strife,  which  imme 
diately  raged  with  great  fury,  and  with  prodigious  clamour. 
Waally  had  all  his  muskets  fired,  too,  though  as  yet  he  saw 
no  enemy,  and  did  not  know  in  what  direction  to  aim. 
He  could  see  men  moving  about  on  the  Reef,  it  is  true, 
but  it  was  only  at  moments,  as  they  mostly  kept  themselves 
behind  the  covers.  After  firing  his  muskets,  the  chief 
issued  an  order  for  a  charge,  and  several  hundreds  of  his 
warriors  plunged  into  the  basin,  and  began  to  swim  to 
wards  the  point  to  be  assailed.  This  movement  admo 
nished  Betts  of  the  prudence  of  retiring  towards  the  gate, 
which  he  did  in  good  order,  and  somewhat  deliberately 
This  time,  Waally  actually  got  his  men  upon  the  Reef 
without  a  panic  and  without  loss.  They  landed  in  a  crowd, 
and  were  soon  rushing  in  all  directions,  eager  for  plunder. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  315 

and  thirsting  for  blood.  Betts  was  enabled,  notwithstand 
ing  to  enter  the  gate,  which  he  did  without  delay,  per 
fectly  satisfied  that  all  efforts  of  his  to  resist  the  torrent 
without  must  be  vain.  As  soon  as  his  party  had  entered, 
the  gate  was  closed,  and  Betts  was  at  liberty  to  bestow  all 
his  care  on  the  defence  of  the  crater. 

The  great  extent  of  the  citadel,  which  contained  an  area 
of  not  less  than  a  hundred  acres,  it  will  be  remembered, 
rendered  its  garrison  very  insufficient  for  a  siege.  It  is 
probable  that  no  one  there  would  have  thought  of  defend 
ing  it,  but  for  the  certainty  of  powerful  support  being  at 
hand.  This  certainty  encouraged  the  garrison,  rendering 
their  exertions  more  ready  and  cheerful.  Betts  divided 
his  men  into  parties  of  two,  scattering  them  along  the 
Summit,  with  orders  to  be  vigilant,  and  to  support  each 
other.  It  was  well  known  that  a  man  could  not  enter  from 
without  unless  by  the  gate,  or  aided  by  ladders,  or  some 
other  mechanical  invention.  The  time  necessary  to  pro 
vide  the  last  would  bring  broad  daylight,  and  enable  the 
colonists  to  march  such  a  force  to  the  menaced  point,  as 
would  be  pretty  certain  to  prove  sufficient  to  resist  the 
assailants.  The  gate  itself  was  commanded  by  a  carronade, 
and  was  watched  by  a  guard. 

Great  was  the  disappointment  of  Waally  when  he  ascer 
tained,  by  personal  examination,  that  the  Summit  could 
not  be  scaled,  even  by  the  most  active  of  his  party,  without 
recourse  to  assistance,  by  means  of  artificial  contrivances. 
He  had  the  sagacity  to  collect  all  his  men  immediately  be 
neath  the  natural  walls,  where  they  were  alone  safe  from 
the  fire  of  the  guns,  but  where  they  were  also  useless.  A 
large  pile  of  iron,  an  article  so  coveted,  was  in  plain  sight, 
beneath  a  shed,  but  he  did  not  dare  to  send  a  single  hand 
to  touch  it,  since  it  would  have  brought  the  adventurer 
under  fire.  A  variety  of  other  articles,  almost  as  tempting, 
though  not  perhaps  of  the  same  intrinsic  value,  lay  also  in 
sight,  but  were  tabooed  by  the  magic  of  powder  and  balls. 
Eleven  hundred  warriors,  as  was  afterwards  ascertained, 
landed  on  the  Reef  that  eventful  morning,  and  assembled 
under  the  walls  of  the  crater.  A  hundred  more  remained 
in  the  canoes,  which  lay  about  a  league  off,  in  the  western 
passage,  or  to  leeward,  awaiting  the  result  of  the  enterprise. 


316  THE   CRATER; 

The  first  effort  made  by  Waally  was  to  throw  a  force 
upward,  by  rearing  one  man  on  another's  shoulders.  This 
scheme  succeeded  in  part,  but  the  fellow  who  first  showed 
his  head  above  the  perpendicular  part  of  the  cliff,  received 
a  bullet  in  his  brains.  The  rnusket  was  fired  by  the  hands 
of  Socrates.  This  one  discharge  brought  down  the  whole 
fabric,  several  of  those  who  fell  sustaining  serious  injuries, 
in  the  way  of  broken  bones.  The  completely  isolated  po 
sition  of  the  crater,  which  stood,  as  it  might  be,  aloof  from 
all  surrounding  objects,  added  materially  to  its  strength  in 
a  military  sense,  and  Waally  was  puzzled  how  to  overcome 
difficulties  that  might  have  embarrassed  a  more  civilized 
soldier.  For  the  first  time  in  his  life,  that  warrior  had 
encountered  a  sort  of  fortress,  which  could  be  entered  only 
by  regular  approaches,  unless  it  might  be  carried  by  a 
coup  de  main.  At  the  latter  the  savages  were  expert 
enough,  and  on  it  they  had  mainly  relied  ;  but,  disappointed 
in  this  respect,  they  found  themselves  thrown  back  on  re 
sources  that  were  far  from  being  equal  to  the  emergency. 

Tired  of  inactivity,  Waally  finally  decided  on  making  a 
desperate  effort.  The  ship-yard  was  still  kept  up  as  a  place 
for  the  repairing  of  boats,  &/c.,  and  it  always  had  more  or 
less  lumber  lying  in,  or  near  it.  Selecting  a  party  of  a 
hundred  resolute  men,  and  placing  them  under  the  orders 
of  one  of  his  bravest  chiefs,  Waally  sent  them  off,  on  the 
run,  to  bring  as  much  timber,  boards,  planks,  &c.,  as  they 
could  carry,  within  the  cover  of  the  cliffs.  Now,  Belts 
had  foreseen  the  probability  of  this  very  sortie,  and  had 
levelled  one  of  his  carronades,  loaded  to  the  muzzle  with 
canister,  directly  at  the  largest  pile  of  the  planks.  No 
sooner  did  the  adventurers  appear,  therefore,  than  he  blew 
his  match.  The  savages  were  collected  around  the  planks 
in  a  crowd,  when  he  fired  his  gun.  A  dozen  of  them  fell, 
and  the  rest  vanished  like  so  much  dust  scattered  by  a 
whirlwind. 

Just  at  that  moment,  the  cry  passed  along  the  Summit 
that  the  Rancocus  was  in  sight.  The  governor  must  have 
heard  the  report  of  the  gun,  for  he  discharged  one  in  return, 
an  encouraging  signal  of  his  approach.  In  a  minute,  & 
third  came  from  the  westward,  and  Betts  saw  the  sails  of 
the  Mermaid  over  the  low  land.  It  is  scarcely  necessarj 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  317 

to  add,  that  the  reports  of  the  two  guns  from  a  distance, 
arid  the  appearance  of  the  two  vessels,  put  an  end  at  once 
to  all  Waally's  schemes,  and  induced  him  to  commence, 
with  the  least  possible  delay,  a  second  retreat  from  the  spot 
which,  like  Nelson's  frigates,  might  almost  be  said  to  be 
imprinted  on  his  heart. 

Waally  retired  successfully,  if  not  with  much  dignity. 
At  a  given  signal  his  men  rushed  for  the  water,  plunged  in 
and  swam  across  the  basin  again.  It  was  in  Betts's  power 
to  have  killed  many  on  the  retreat,  but  he  was  averse  to 
shedding  blood  unnecessarily.  Fifty  lives,  more  or  less, 
could  be  of  no  great  moment  in  the  result,  as  soon  as  a 
retreat  was  decided  on ;  and  the  savages  were  permitted  to 
retire,  and  to  carry  off  their  killed  and  wounded  without 
molestation.  The  last  was  done  by  wheeling  forward  the 
planks,  and  crossing  at  the  bridge. 

It  was  far  easier,  however,  for  Waally  to  gain  his  canoes, 
than  to  know  which  way  to  steer  after  he  had  reached  them. 
The  Mermaid  cut  off  his  retreat  by  the  western  passage, 
and  the  Rancocus  was  coming  fast  along  the  northern.  In 
order  to  reach  either  the  eastern,  or  the  southern,  it  would 
be  necessary  to  pass  within  gun-shot  of  the  Reef,  and, 
what  was  more,  to  run  the  gauntlet  between  the  crater  and 
the  Rancocus.  To  this  danger  Waally  was  compelled  to 
submit,  since  he  had  no  other  means  of  withdrawing  his 
fleet.  It  was  true,  that  by  paddling  to  windward,  he  greatly 
lessened  the  danger  he  ran  from  the  two  vessels,  since  it 
would  not  be  in  their  power  to  overtake  him  in  the  narrow 
channels  of  the  group,  so  long  as  he  went  in  the  wind's 
eye.  It  is  probable  that  the  savages  understood  this,  and 
that  the  circumstance  greatly  encouraged  them  in  the  effort 
they  immediately  made  to  get  into  the  eastern  passage. 
Betts  permitted  them  to  pass  the  Reef,  without  firing  at 
them  again,  though  some  of  the  canoes  were  at  least  half 
an  hour  within  the  range  of  his  guns,  while  doing  so.  It 
was  lucky  for  the  Indians  that  the  Rancocus  did  not  arrive 
until  the  last  of  their  party  were  as  far  to  windward  as  the 
spot  where  the  ship  had  anchored,  when  she  was  first  brought 
up  by  artificial  means  into  those  waters. 

Betts  went  off  to  meet  the  governor,  in  order  to  make 
an  early  report  of  his  proceedings.  It  was  apparent  that 


318  THE  CRATER; 

the  i anger  was  over,  and  Woolston  was  not  sorry  to  find 
that  success  was  obtained  without  recourse  to  his  batte 
ries.  The  ship  went  immediately  alongside  of  the  natural 
quay,  and  her  people  poured  ashore,  in  a  crowd,  the  instant 
a  plank  could  be  run  out,  in  order  to  enable  them  to  do  so. 
In  an  hour  the  cows  were  landed,  and  were  grazing  in  the 
crater,  where  the  grass  was  knee-high,  and  everything  pos 
sessing  life  was  out  of  the  ship,  the  rats  and  cock-roaches 
perhaps  excepted.  As  for  the  enemy,  no  one  now  cared  for 
them.  The  man  aloft  said  they  could  be  seen,  paddling 
away  as  if  for  life,  and  already  too  far  for  pursuit.  It  would, 
have  been  easy  enough  for  the  vessels  to  cut  off  the  fugitives 
by  going  into  the  offing  again,  but  this  was  not  the  desire  of 
any  there,  all  being  too  happy  to  be  rid  of  them,  to  take 
any  steps  to  prolong  the  intercourse. 

Great  was  the  delight  of  the  colonists  to  be  once  more 
on  the  land.  Under  ordinary  circumstances,  the  immi 
grants  might  not  have  seen  so  many  charms  in  the  Reef 
and  crater,  and  hog-lot;  but  five  months  at  sea  have  a 
powerful  influence  in  rendering  the  most  barren  spot  beau 
tiful.  Barrenness,  however,  was  a  reproach  that  could  no 
longer  be  justly  applied  to  the  group,  and  most  especially 
to  those  portions  of  it  which  had  received  the  attention  of 
its  people.  Even  trees  were  beginning  to  be  numerous, 
thousands  of  them  having  been  planted,  some  for  their 
fruits,  some  for  their  wood,  and  others  merely  for  the 
shade.  Of  willows,  alone,  Socrates  with  his  own  hand 
had  set  out  more  than  five  thousand,  the  operation  being 
simply  that  of  thrusting  the  end  of  a  branch  into  the  mud. 
Of  the  rapidity  of  the  growth,  it  is  scarcely  necessary  to 
speak ;  though  it  quadrupled  that  known  even  to  the  most 
fertile  regions  of  America. 

Here,  then,  was  Mark  once  more  at  home,  after  so  long 
a  passage.  There  was  his  ship,  too,  well  freighted  with  a 
hundred  things,  all  of  which  would  contribute  to  the  com 
fort  and  well-being  of  the  colonists !  It  was  a  moment 
when  the  governor's  heart  was  overflowing  with  gratitude, 
and  could  he  then  have  taken  Bridget  and  his  children  in 
his  arms,  the  cup  of  happiness  would  have  been  full.  Brid 
get  was  not  forgotten,  however,  for  in  less  than  half  an 
hour  after  the  ship  was  secured,  Belts  sailed  in  the  Nesha- 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  319 

mony,  for  the  Peak ;  he  was  to  carry  over  the  joyful  tidings, 
and  to  bring  the  '  governor's  lady'  to  the  Reef.  Ere  the 
sun  set,  or  about  that  time,  his  return  might  be  expected, 
the  Neshamony  making  the  trip  in  much  less  time  than 
one  of  the  smaller  boats.  It  was  not  necessary,  however, 
for  Betts  to  go  so  far,  for  when  he  had  fairly  cleared  Cape 
South,  and  was-  in  the  strait,  he  fell  in  with  the  Abraham, 
bound  over  to  the  Reef.  It  appeared  that  some  signs  of 
the  hostile  canoes  had  been  seen  from  the  Peak,  as  Waally 
was  crossing  from  Rancocus  Island,  and,  after  a  council, 
it  had  been  decided  to  send  the  Abraham  across,  to  notify 
the  people  on  the  Reef  of  the  impending  danger,  and  to 
aid  in  repelling  the  enemy.  Bridget  and  Martha  had  both 
come  in  the  schooner ;  the  first,  to  look  after  the  many  valu 
ables  he  had  left  at  the  '  governor's  house/  on  the  Summit, 
and  the  last,  as  her  companion. 

We  leave  the  reader  to  imagine  the  joy  that  was  exhi 
bited,  when  those  on  board  the  Abraham  ascertained  the 
arrival  of  the  Rancocus !  Bridget  was  in  ecstasies,  and 
greatly  did  she  exult  in  her  own  determination  to  cross  on 
this  occasion,  and  to  bring  her  child  with  her.  After  the 
first  burst  of  happiness,  and  the  necessary  explanations  had 
been  made,  a  consultation  was  had  touching  what  was  next 
to  be  done.  Brown  was  in  command  of  the  Abraham,  with 
a  sufficient  crew,  and  Betts  sent  him  to  windward,  outside 
of  everything,  to  look  after  the  enemy.  It  was  thought 
desirable  not  only  to  see  Waally  well  clear  of  the  group, 
but  to  force  him  to  pass  off  to  the  northward,  in  order  that 
he  might  not  again  approach  the  Reef,  as  well  as  to  give 
him  so  much  annoyance  on  his  retreat,  as  to  sicken  him 
of  these  expeditions  for  the  future.  For  such  a  service  the 
schooner  was  much  the  handiest  of  all  the  vessels  of  the 
colonists,  since  she  might  be  worked  by  a  couple  of  hands, 
and  her  armament  was  quite  sufficient  for  all  that  was 
required  of  her,  on  the  occasion.  Brown  was  every  way 
competent  to  command,  as  Betts  well  knew,  and  he  re 
ceived  the  females  on  board  the  Neshamony,  and  put 
about,  leaving  the  schooner  to  turn  to  windward. 

Bridget  reached  the  Reef  before  it  was  noon.  All  the 
proceedings  of  that  day  had  commenced  so  early,  that  there 
had  been  time  for  this.  The  governor  saw  the  Nesha- 


320  THE   CRATER; 

mony,  as  she  approached,  and  great  uneasiness  beset  him, 
He  knew  she  had  not  been  as  far  as  the  Peak,  and  sup 
posed  that  Waally's  fleet  had  intercepted  her,  Belts  coming 
back  for  reinforcements.  But,  as  the  boat  drew  near,  the 
fluttering  of  female  dresses  was  seen,  and  then  his  unerring 
glass  let  him  get  a  distant  view  of  the  sweet  face  of  his 
young  wife.  From  that  moment  the  governor  was  incapa 
ble  of  giving  a  coherent  or  useful  order,  until  Bridget  had 
arrived.  Vessels  that  came  in  from  the  southward  were 
obliged  to  pass  through  the  narrow  entrance,  between  the 
Reef  and  the  Hog  Lot,  where  was  the  drawbridge  so  often 
mentioned.  There  was  water  enough  to  float  a  frigate, 
and  h  was  possible  to  take  a  frigate  through,  the  width 
being  about  fifty  feet,  though  as  yet  nothing  larger  than 
the  Friend  Abraham  White  had  made  the  trial.  At  this 
point,  then,  Woolston  took  his  station,  waiting  the  arrival 
of  the  Neshamony,  with  an  impatience  he  was  a  little 
ashamed  of  exhibiting. 

Petts  saw  the  governor,  in  good  time,  and  pointed  him 
out  to  Bridget,  who  could  hardly  be  kept  on  board  the 
boat,  so  slow  did  the  progress  of  the  craft  now  seem.  But 
the  tender  love  which  this  young  couple  bore  each  other 
was  soon  to  be  rewarded ;  for  Mark  sprang  on  board  the 
Neshamony  as  she  went  through  the  narrow  pass,  and  im 
mediately  he  had  Bridget  folded  to  his  heart. 

Foreigners  are  apt  to  say  that  we  children  of  this  western 
world  do  not  submit  to  the  tender  emotions  with  the  spme 
self-abandonment  as  those  who  are  born  nearer  to  the  rising 
sun  ;  that  our  hearts  are  as  cold  and  selfish  as  our  manners ; 
and  that  we  live  more  for  the  lower  and  grovelling  passions, 
than  for  sentiment  and  the  affections.  Most  sincerely  do 
we  wish  that  every  charge  which  European  jealousy,  and 
Eu-npean  superciliousness,  have  brought  against  the  Ame 
rican  character,  was  as  false  as  this.  That  the  people  of 
this  country  are  more  restrained  in  the  exhibition  of  all 
their  emotions,  than  those  across  the  great  waters,  we  be 
lieve  ;  but,  that  the  last  feel  the  most,  we  shall  be  very 
unwilling  to  allow.  Most  of  all  shall  we  deny  that  the 
female  form  contains  hearts  more  true  to  all  its  affections, 
spKts  more  devoted  to  the  interests  of  its  earthly  head,  or 
an  identity  of  existence  more  perfect  than  those  with  which 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  321 

the  American  wife  clings  to  her  husband.  She  is  literally 
"  bone  of  his  bone,  and  flesh  of  his  flesh."  It  is  seldom 
that  her  wishes  cross  the  limits  of  the  domestic  circle, 
which  to  her  is  earth  itself,  and  all  that  it  contains  which 
is  most  desirable.  Her  husband  and  children  compose  her 
little  world,  and  beyond  them  and  their  sympathies,  it  is 
rare  indeed  that  her  truant  affections  ever  wish  to  stray. 
A  part  of  this  concentration  of  the  American  wife's  exist 
ence  in  these  domestic  interests,  is  doubtless  owing  to  the 
simplicity  of  American  life  and  the  absence  of  temptation. 
Still,  so  devoted  is  the  female  heart,  so  true  to  its  impulses, 
and  so  little  apt  to  wander  from  home-feelings  and  home- 
duties,  that  the  imputation  to  which  there  is  allusion,  is 
just  that,  of  all  others,  to  which  the  wives  of  the  republic 
ought  not  to  be  subject. 

It  was  even-tide  before  the  governor  was  again  seen 
among  his  people.  By  this  time,  the  immigrants  had  taken 
their  first  survey  of  the  Reef,  and  the  nearest  islands, 
which  the  least  sanguine  of  their  numbers  admitted  quite 
equalled  the  statements  they  had  originally  heard  of  the 
advantages  of  the  place.  It  was,  perhaps,  fortunate  that 
the  fruits  of  the  tropics  were  so  abundant  with  Socrates 
and  his  companions.  By  this  time,  oranges  abounded,  more 
than  a  thousand  trees  having,  from  time  to  time,  been 
planted  in  and  around  the  crater,  alone.  Groves  of  them 
were  also  appearing  in  favourable  spots,  on  the  adjacent 
islands.  It  is  true,  these  trees  were  yet  too  young  to  pro 
duce  very  bountifully ;  but  they  had  begun  to  bear,  and  it 
was  thought  a  very  delightful  thing,  among  the  fresh  arri 
vals  from  Pennsylvania,  to  be  able  to  walk  in  an  orange 
grove,  and  to  pluck  the  fruit  at  pleasure ! 

As  for  figs,  melons,  limes,  shaddocks,  and  even  cocoa- 
nuts,  all  were  now  to  be  had,  and  in  quantities  quite  suffi 
cient  for  the  population.  In  time,  the  colonists  craved  the 
apples  of  their  own  latitude,  and  the  peach;  those  two 
fruits,  so  abundant  and  so  delicious  in  their  ancient  homes  ; 
but  the  novelty  was  still  on  them,  and  it  required  time  to 
learn  the  fact  that  we  tire  less  of  the  apple,  and  the  peach, 
and  the  potato,  than  of  any  other  of  the  rarest  gifts  of 
nature.  That  which  the  potato  has  become  among  vege 
tables,  is  the  apple  among  fruits ;  and  when  we  rise  into 


322  THE   CRATER; 

the  m©re  luscious  and  temporary  of  the  bountiful  products 
of  horticulture,  the  peach  (in  its  perfection)  occupies  a 
place  altogether  apart,  having  no  rival  in  its  exquisite  fla 
vour,  while  it  never  produces  satiety.  The  peach  and  the 
grape  are  the  two  most  precious  of  the  gifts  of  Providence, 
in  the  way  of  fruits. 

That  night,  most  of  the  immigrants  slept  in  the  ship ; 
nearly  all  of  them,  however,  for  the  last  time.  About  ten 
in  the  forenoon,  Brown  came  running  down  to  the  Reef, 
through  the  eastern  passage,  to  report  Waally  well  off,  hav 
ing  quitted  the  group  to-windward,  and  made  the  best  of 
his  way  towards  his  own  islands,  without  turning  aside  to 
make  a  starting-point  of  Rancocus.  It  was  a  good  deal 
questioned  whether  the  chief  would  find  his  proper  domi 
nions,  after  a  run  of  four  hundred  miles  ;  for  a  very  trifling 
deviation  from  the  true  course  at  starting,  would  be  very 
apt  to  bring  him  out  wide  of  his  goal.  This  was  a  matter, 
however,  that  gave  the  colonists  very  little  concern.  The 
greater  the  embarrassments  encountered  by  their  enemies, 
the  less  likely  would  they  be  to  repeat  the  visit ;  and  should 
a  few  perish,  it  might  be  all  the  better  for  themselves.  The 
governor  greatly  approved  of  Brown's  course  in  not  follow 
ing  the  canoes,  since  the  repulse  was  sufficient  as  it  was, 
and  there  was  very  little  probability  that  the  colony  would 
meet  with  any  further  difficulty  from  this  quarter,  now  that 
it  had  got  to  be  so  strong. 

That  day  and  the  next,  the  immigrants  were  busy  in 
landing  their  effects,  which  consisted  of  furniture,  tools 
and  stores,  of  one  sort  and  another.  As  the  governor 
intended  to  send,  at  once,  forty  select  families  over  to  the 
Peak,  the  Abraham  was  brought  alongside  of  the  quay,  and 
the  property  of  those  particular  families  was,  as  it  came 
ashore,  sent  on  board  the  schooner.  Males  and  females 
were  all  employed  in  this  duty,  the  Reef  resembling  a  bee 
hive  just  at  that  point.  Bill  Brown,  who  still  commanded 
the  Abraham,  was  of  course  present ;  and  he  made  an 
occasion  to  get.  in  company  with  the  governor,  with  whom 
he  held  the  following  short  dialogue  : 

"A  famous  ship's  company  is  this,  sir,  you  've  landed 
among  us,  and  some  on  'em  is  what  I  calls  of  the  right 
sort !" 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  323 

"I  understand  you,  Bill,"  answered  Mark,  smiling. 
'*  Your  commission  has  been  duly  executed ;  and  Phoebe  is 
here,  ready  to  be  spliced  as  soon  as  there  shall  be  an  op 
portunity." 

'•'•That  is  easily  enough  made,  when  people's  so  in 
clined,"  said  Bill,  fidgeting.  "If  you'd  be  so  good,  sir, 
as  just  to  point  out  the  young  woman  to  me,  I  might  be 
beginning  to  like  her,  in  the  meanwhile." 

"Young?  Nothing  was  said  about  that  in  the  order, 
Bill.  You  wished  a  wife,  invoiced  and  consigned  to  your 
self;  and  one  has  been  shipped,  accordingly.  You  must 
consider  the  state  of  the  market,  and  remember  that  the 
article  is  in  demand  precisely  as  it  is  youthful." 

"  Well,  well,  sir,  I  '11  not  throw  her  on  your  hands,  if 
she 's  old  enough  to  be  rny  mother  ;  though  I  do  rather  sup 
pose,  Mr.  Woolston,  you  stood  by  an  old  shipmate  in  a 
foreign  land,  and  that  there  is  a  companion  suitable  for  a 
fellow  of  only  two-and-thirty  sent  out  1" 

"  Of  that  you  shall  judge  for  yourself,  Bill.  Here  she 
comes,  carrying  a  looking-glass,  as  if  it  were  to  look  at 
her  own  pretty  face ;  and  if  she  prove  to  be  only  as  good 
as  she  is  good-looking,  you  will  have  every  reason  to  be 
satisfied.  What  is  more,  Bill,  your  wife  does  not  come 
empty-handed,  having  a  great  many  articles  that  will  help 
to  set  you  up  comfortably  in  housekeeping." 

Brown  was  highly  pleased  with  the  governor's  choice, 
which  had  been  made  with  a  due  regard  to  the  interests 
arid  tastes  of  the  absent  shipmate.  Phoebe  appeared  well 
satisfied  with  her  allotted  husband ;  and  that  very  day  the 
couple  was  united  in  the  cabin  of  the  Abraham.  On  the 
same  occasion,  the  ceremony  was  performed  for  Unus  and 
Juno,  as  well  as  for  Peters  and  his  Indian  wife ;  the  go 
vernor  considering  it  proper  that  regard  to  appearances  and 
all  decent  observances,  should  be  paid,  as  comported  with 
their  situation. 

About  sunset  of  the  third  day  after  the  arrival  of  the 
Rancocus,  the  Abraham  sailed  for  the  Peak,  having  on 
board  somewhat  less  than  a  hundred  of  the  immigrants, 
including  females  and  children.  The  Neshamony  pre 
ceded  her  several  hours,  taking  across  the  governor  and 


324  THE  CRATER; 

his  family.  Mark  longed  to  see  his  sister  Anne,  and  his 
two  brothers  participated  in  this  wish,  if  possible,  in  a  stilJ 
more  lively  manner. 

The  meeting  of  these  members  of  the  same  family  was 
of  the  most  touching  character.  The  young  men  found 
their  sister  much  better  established  than  they  had  antici 
pated,  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  very  many  more  comforts 
than  they  had  supposed  it  was  in  the  power  of  any  one  to 
possess  in  a  colony  still  so  young.  Heaton  had  erected  a 
habitation  for  himself,  in  a  charming  grove,  where  there 
were  water,  fruits,  and  other  conveniences,  near  at  hand, 
and  where  his  own  family  was  separated  from  the  rest  of 
the  community.  This  distinction  had  been  conferred  on 
him,  by  common  consent,  in  virtue  of  his  near  affinity  to 
the  governor,  whose  substitute  he  then  was,  and  out  of 
respect  to  his  education  and  original  rank  in  life.  Sea 
men  are  accustomed  to  defer  to  station  and  authority,  and 
are  all  the  happier  for  the  same ;  and  the  thought  of  any 
jea'ousy  on  account  of  this  privilege,  which  as  yet  was 
conh'ned  to  Mark  and  Heaton,  and  their  respective  fami 
lies,  had  not  yet  crossed  the  mind  of  any  one  on  the 
island. 

About  twelve,  or  at  midnight,  the  Abraham  entered  the 
cove.  Late  as  was  the  hour,  each  immigrant  assumed  a 
load  suited  to  his  or  her  strength,  and  ascended  the  Stairs, 
favoured  by  the  sweet  light  of  a  full  moon.  That  night 
most  of  the  new-comers  passed  in  the  groves,  under  tents 
or  in  an  arbour  that  had  been  prepared  for  them ;  and  sweet 
was  the  repose  that  attended  happiness  and  security,  in  a 
climate  so  agreeable. 

Next  morning,  when  the  immigrants  came  out  of  their 
temporary  dwellings,  and  looked  upon  the  fair  scene  before 
th.  «n,  they  could  scarcely  believe  in  its  reality  !  It  is  true, 
nothing  remarkable  or  unexpected  met  their  eyes  in  the 
shape  of  artificial  accessories;  but  the  bountiful  gifts  of 
Providence,  and  the  natural  beauties  of  the  spot,  as  much 
exceeded  their  anticipations  as  it  did  their  power  of  ima 
gining  such  glories !  The  admixture  of  softness  and  mag 
nificence  made  a  whole  that  they  had  never  before  beheld 
in  any  other  portion  of  the  globe;  and  there  was  not  one 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  325 

among  them  all  that  did  not,  for  the  moment,  feel  and 
speak  as  if  he  or  she  had  been  suddenly  transformed  to  an 
earthly  paradise. 


CHAPTEK  XXII. 

"  You  have  said  they  are  men ; 
As  such  their  hearts  are  something." 

BYHOBT. 

THE  colony  had  now  reached  a  point  when  it  became 
necessary  to  proceed  with  method  and  caution.  Certain 
great  principles  were  to  be  established,  on  which  the  gover 
nor  had  long  reflected,  and  he  was  fully  prepared  to  set 
them  up,  and  to  defend  them,  though  he  knew  that  ideas 
prevailed  among  a  few  of  his  people,  which  might  dispose 
them  to  cavil  at  his  notions,  if  not  absolutely  to  oppose 
him.  Men  are  fond  of  change ;  half  the  time,  for  a  reason 
no  better  than  that  it  is  change ;  and,  not  unfrequently, 
they  permit  this  wayward  feeling  to  unsettle  interests  that 
are  of  the  last  importance  to  them,  and  which  find  no 
small  part  of  their  virtue  in  their  permanency. 

Hitherto,  with  such  slight  exceptions  as  existed  in  de 
ference  to  the  station,  not  to  say  rights  of  the  gove-nor, 
everything  of  an  agricultural  character  had  been  possessed 
in  common  among  the  colonists.  But  this  was  a  state  of 
things  which  the  good  sense  of  Mark  told  him  could  not, 
and  ought  not  to  last.  The  theories  which  have  come 
into  fashion  in  our  own  times,  concerning  the  virtues  of 
association,  were  then  little  known  and  less  credited. 
Society,  as  it  exists  in  a  legal  form,  is  association  plough 
for  all  useful  purposes,  and  sometimes  too  much ;  and  the 
governor  saw  no  use  in  forming  a  wheel  within  a  wheel. 
If  men  have  occasion  for  each  other's  assistance  to  effect  a 
particular  object,  let  them  unite,  in  welcome,  for  that  pur 
pose  ;  but  Mark  was  fully  determined  that  there  should  be 
but  one  government  in  his  land,  and  that  this  government 
should  be  of  a  character  to  encourage  and  not  to  depress 
exertion.  So  long  as  a  man  toiled  for  himself  and  those 
28 


326  THE   CRATER; 

nearest  and  dearest  to  him,  society  had  a  security  for  his 
doing  much,  that  would  be  wanting  where  the  proceeds 
of  the  entire  community  were  to  be  shared  in  common; 
and,  on  the  knowledge  of  this  simple  and  obvious  truth, 
did  our  young  legislator  found  his  theory  of  government. 
Protect  all  in  their  rights  equally,  but,  that  done,  let  every 
man  pursue  his  road  to  happiness  in  his  own  way ;  con 
ceding  no  more  of  his  natural  rights  than  were  necessary 
to  the  great  ends  of  peace,  security,  and  law.  Such  was 
Mark's  theory.  As  for  the  modern  crotchet  that  men 
yielded  no  natural  right  to  government,  but  were  to  receive 
all  and  return  nothing,  the  governor,  in  plain  language, 
was  not  fool  enough  to  believe  it.  He  was  perfectly  aware 
that  when  a  man  gives  authority  to  society  to  compel  him 
to  attend  court  as  a  witness,  for  instance,  he  yields  just  so 
much  of  his  natural  rights  to  society,  as  might  be  necessary 
to  empower  him  to  stay  away,  if  he  saw  fit ;  and,  so  on, 
through  the  whole  of  the  very  long  catalogue  of  the  claims 
which  the  most  indulgent  communities  make  upon  the  ser 
vices  of  their  citizens.  Mark  understood  the  great  deside 
ratum  to  be,  not  the  setting  up  of  theories  to  which  every 
attendant  fact  gives  the  lie,  but  the  ascertaining,  as  near  as 
human  infirmity  will  allow,  the  precise  point  at  which  con 
cession  to  government  ought  to  terminate,  and  that  of  uncon 
trolled  individual  freedom  commence.  He  was  not  visionary 
enough  to  suppose  that  he  was  to  be  the  first  to  make  this 
great  discovery ;  but  he  was  conscious  of  entering  on  the 
task  with  the  purest  intentions.  Our  governor  had  no 
relish  for  power  for  power's  sake,  but  only  wielded  it  for 
the  general  good.  By  nature,  he  was  more  disposed  to 
seek  happiness  in  a  very  small  circle,  and  would  have  been 
just  as  well  satisfied  to  let  another  govern,  as  to  rule  him 
self,  had  there  been  another  suited  to  such  a  station.  But 
there  was  not.  His  own  early  habits  of  command,  the 
peculiar  circumstances  which  had  first  put  him  in  posses 
sion  of  the  territory,  as  if  it  were  a  special  gift  of  Provi 
dence  to  himself,  his  past  agency  in  bringing  about  the 
actual  state  of  things,  and  his  property,  which  amounted  to 
more  than  that  of  all  the  rest  of  the  colony  put  together, 
contributed  to  give  him  a  title  and  authority  to  rule,  which 
would  have  set  the  claims  of  any  rival  at  defiance,  had  such 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  327 

a  person  existed.  But  there  was  no  rival ;  not  a  being  pre» 
sent  desiring  to  see  another  in  his  place. 

The  first  step  of  the  governor  was  to  appoint  his  brother, 
Abraham  Woolston,  the  secretary  of  the  colony.  In  that 
age  America  had  very  different  notions  of  office,  and  of  its 
dignity,  of  the  respect  due  to  authority,  and  of  the  men  who 
wielded  it,  from  what  prevail  at  the  present  time.  The 
colonists,  coming  as  they  did  from  America,  brought  with 
them  the  notions  of  the  times,  and  treated  their  superiors 
accordingly.  In  the  last  century  a  governor  was  "  the  go 
vernor,"  and  not  "  our  governor,"  and  a  secretary  "  the 
secretary,"  and  not  "  our  secretary,"  men  now  taking  more 
liberties  with  what  they  fancy  their  own,  than  was  theii 
wont  with  what  they  believed  had  been  set  over  them  foi 
their  good.  Mr.  Secretary  Woolston  soon  became  a  per 
sonage,  accordingly,  as  did  all  the  other  considerable  func 
tionaries  appointed  by  the  governor. 

The  very  first  act  of  Abraham  Woolston,  on  being  sworn 
into  office,  was  to  make  a  registry  of  the  entire  population. 
We  shall  give  a  synopsis  of  it,  in  order  that  the  reader 
may  understand  the  character  of  the  materials  with  which 
the  governor  had  room  to  work,  viz  : — 


Males, 147 

Adults, 113 

Children, 34 

Married, 101 

Widowers, 1 


Females, 158 

Adults, 121 

Children, 37 

Married, 101 

Widows, 4 


Seamen, 38 

Mechanics, 26 

Physician, 1 

Student  in  Medicine, 1 

Lawyer, 1 

Clergyman, 1 

Population, 305 

Here,  then,  was  a  community  composed  already  of  three 
hundred  and  five  souls.  The  governor's  policy  was  not  to 
increase  this  number  by  further  immigration,  unless  in 
special  cases,  and  then  only  after  due  deliberation  and  in 
quiry.  Great  care  had  been  taken  with  the  characters  of 
the  present  settlers,  and  careless  infusions  of  new  members 
might  undo  a  great  deal  of  good  that  had  already  been 


328  THE   CRATER; 

done.  This  matter  was  early  laid  before  the  new  council, 
and  the  opinions  of  the  governor  met  with  a  unanimous 
concurrence. 

On  the  subject  of  the  council,  it  may  be  well  to  say  a 
word.  It  was  increased  to  nine,  and  a  new  election  was 
made,  the  incumbents  holding  their  offices  for  life.  This 
last  provision  was  made  to  prevent  the  worst  part,  and  the 
most  corrupting  influence  of  politics,  viz.,  the  elections, 
from  getting  too  much  sway  over  the  public  mind.  4The 
new  council  was  composed  as  follows,  viz  : — 

Messrs.  Heaton, 
Pennock, 
Belts, 

C.  Woolston,   •)  ,  ,    ,       , 

A.  Woolston,  5 thS  S°vernor  s  brothers. 
Charlton, 
Saunders, 
Wilmot,  and 
Warrington. 

These  names  belonged  to  the  most  intelligent  men  of  the 
vsolony,  Betts  perhaps  excepted ;  but  his  claims  were  too 
obvious  to  be  slighted.  Betts  had  good  sense  moreover, 
and  a  great  deal  of  modesty.  All  the  rest  of  the  council 
had  more  or  less  claims  to  be  gentlemen,  but  Bob  never 
pretended  to  that  character.  He  knew  his  own  qualifica 
tions,  and  did  not  render  himself  ridiculous  by  aspiring  to 
be  more  than  he  really  was;  still,  his  practical  knowledge 
made  him  a  very  useful  member  of  the  council,  where  his 
opinions  were  always  heard  with  attention  and  respect. 
Charlton  and  Wilmot  were  merchants,  and  intended  to 
embark  regularly  in  trade;  while  Warrington,  who  possessed 
more  fortune  than  any  of  the  other  colonists,  unless  it 
might  be  the  governor,  called  himself  a  farmer,  though  he 
had  a  respectable  amount  of  general  science,  and  was  well 
read  in  most  of  the  liberal  studies. 

Warrington  was  made  judge,  with  a  small  salary,  all  of 
which  he^gave  to  the  clergyman,  the  Rev.  Mr.  White. 
This  was  done  because  he  had  no  need  of  the  money  him 
self,  and  there  was  no  other  provision  for  the  parson  than 
free  contributions.  John  Woolston,  who  had  read  law, 
was  named  Attorney-General,  or  colony's  attorney,  as  the 


PEAK.  329 

office  was  more  modestly  styled  ;  to  which  duties  he  added 
those  of  surveyor-general.  Charles  received  his  salary,  which 
was  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  being  in  need  of  it. 
The  question  of  salary,  as  respects  the  governor,  was  also 
settled.  Mark  had  no  occasion  for  the  money,  owning  all 
the  vessels,  with  most  of  the  cargo  of  the  Rancocus,  as 
well  as  having  brought  out  with  him  no  less  a  sum  than 
five  thousand  dollars,  principally  in  change — halves,  quar 
ters,  shillings  and  six-pences.  Then  a  question  might 
well  arise,  whether  he  did  not  own  most  of  the  stock ;  a 
large  part  of  it  was  his  beyond  all  dispute,  though  some 
doubts  might  exist  as  to  the  remainder.  On  this  subject 
the  governor  came  to  a  most  wise  decision.  He  was  fully 
awa-e  that  nothing  was  more  demoralizing  to  a  people 
than  to  suffer  them  to  get  loose  notions  on  the  subject  of 
property.  Property  of  all  kinds,  he  early  determined, 
should  be  most  rigidly  respected,  and  a  decision  that  he 
made  shortly  after  his  return  from  America,  while  acting 
in  his  capacity  of  chief  magistrate,  and  before  the  new 
court  went  into  regular  operation,  was  of  a  character  to 
show  how  he  regarded  this  matter.  The  case  was  as  fol 
lows  : — 

Two  of  the  colonists,  Warner  and  Harris,  had  bad  blood 
between  them.  Warner  had  placed  his  family  in  an  ar 
bour  within  a  grove,  and  to  "  aggravate"  him,  Harris  came 
and  walked  before  his  door,  strutting  up  and  down  like  a 
turkey-cock,  and  in  a  way  to  show  that  it  was  intended  to 
annoy  Warner.  The  last  brought  his  complaint  before 
the  governor.  On  the  part  of  Harris,  it  was  contended 
that  no  injury  had  been  done  the  property  of  Harris,  and 
that,  consequently,  no  damages  could  be  claimed.  The 
question  of  title  was  conceded,  ex  necessitate  rerum.  Go 
vernor  Woolston  decided,  that  a  man's  rights  in  his  pro 
perty  were  not  to  be  limited  by  positive  injuries  to  its 
market  value.  Although  no  grass  or  vegetables  had  been 
destroyed  by  Harris  in  his  walks,  he  had  molested  Warner 
in  such  an  enjoyment  of  his  dwelling,  as,  in  intendment  of 
law,  every  citizen  was  entitled  to  in  his  possessions.  The 
trespass  was  an  aggravated  one,  and  damages  were  given 
accordingly.  In  delivering  his  judgment,  the  governor 
took  occasion  to  state,  that  in  the  administration  of  the 
28* 


330  THE   CRATER; 

Jaw,  the  rights  of  every  man  would  be  protected  in  the 
fullest  extent,  not  only  as  connected  with  pecuniary  con 
siderations,  but  as  connected  with  all  those  moral  uses 
and  feelings  which  contribute  to  human  happiness.  This 
decision  met  with  applause,  and  was  undoubtedly  right 
in  itself.  It  was  approved,  because  the  well-intentioned 
colonists  had  not  learned  to  confound  liberty  with  licen 
tiousness  ;  but  understood  the  former  to  be  the  protection 
of  the  citizen  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  his  innocent  tastes, 
enjoyments  and  personal  rights,  after  making  such  con 
cessions  to  government  as  are  necessary  to  its  mainte 
nance.  Thrice  happy  would  it  be  for  all  lands,  whether 
they  are  termed  despotisms  or  democracies,  could  they 
thoroughly  feel  the  justice  of  this  definition,  and  carry  out 
its  intention  in  practice. 

The  council  was  convened  the  day  succeeding  its  elec 
tion.  After  a  few  preliminary  matters  were  disposed  of, 
the  great  question  was  laid  before  it,  of  a  division  of  pro 
perty,  and  the  grant  of  real  estate.  Warrington  and  Charles 
Woolston  laid  down  the  theory,  that  the  fee  of  all  the  land 
was,  by  gift  of  Providence,  in  the  governor,  and  that  his 
patent,  or  sign-manual,  was  necessary  for  passing  the  title 
into  other  hands.  This  theory  had  an  affinity  to  that  of 
the  Common  Law,  which  made  the  prince  the  suzerain,  and 
rendered  him  the  heir  of  all  escheated  estates.  But  Mark's 
humility,  not  to  say  his  justice,  met  this  doctrine  on  the 
threshold.  He  admitted  the  sovereignty  and  its  right,  but 
placed  it  in  the  body  of  the  colony,  instead  of  in  himself. 
As  the  party  most  interested  took  this  view  of  the  case, 
they  who  were  disposed  to  regard  his  rights  as  more 
sweeping,  were  fain  to  submit.  The  land  was  therefore 
declared  to  be  the  property  of  the  state.  Ample  grants, 
however,  were  made  both  to  the  governor  and  Betts,  as  ori 
ginal  possessors,  or  discoverers,  and  it  was  held  in  law  that 
their  claims  were  thus  compromised.  The  grants  to  Go 
vernor  Woolston  included  quite  a  thousand  acres  on  the 
Peak,  which  was  computed  to  contain  near  thirty  thousand, 
and  an  island  of  about  the  sarre  extent  in  the  group,  which 
was  beautifully  situated  near  its  centre,  and  less  than  a 
league  from  the  crater.  Betts  had  one  hundred  acres 
granted  to  him,  near  the  crater  also.  He  refused  any  othei 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  331 

grant,  as  a  right  growing  out  of  original  possession.  Nor' 
was  his  reasoning  bad  on  the  occasion.  When  he  was 
driven  off,  in  the  Neshamony, ,  the  Reef,  Loam  Island, 
Guano  Island,  and  twenty  or  thirty  rocks,  composed  all  the 
dry  land.  He  had  never  seen  the  Peak  until  Mark  was  in 
possession  of  it,  and  had  no  particular  claim  there.  When 
the  council  came  to  make  its  general  grants,  he  was  wil 
ling  to  come  in  for  his  proper  share  with  the  rest  of  the 
people,  and  he  wanted  no  more.  Heaton  had  a  special 
grant  of  two  hundred  acres  made  to  him  on  the  Peak,  and 
another  in  the  group  of  equal  extent,  as  a  reward  for  his 
early  and  important  services.  Patents  were  made  out,  at 
once,  of  these  several  grants,  under  the  great  seal  of  the 
colony;  for  the  governor  had  provided  parchment,  and 
wax,  and  a  common  seal,  in  anticipation  of  their  being 
all  wanted.  The  rest  of  the  grants  of  land  were  made  on 
a  general  principle,  giving  fifty  acres  on  the  Peak,  and  one 
hundred  in  the  group,  to  each  male  citizen  of  the  age  of 
twenty-one  years;  those  who  had  not  yet  attained  their 
majority  being  compelled  to  wait.  A  survey  was  made, 
and  the  different  lots  were  numbered,  and  registered  by 
those  numbers.  Then  a  lottery  was  made,  each  man's 
name  being  put  in  one  box,  and  the  necessary  numbers  in 
another.  The  number  drawn  against  any  particular  name 
was  the  lot  of  the  person  in  question.  A  registration  of 
the  drawing  was  taken,  and  printed  patents  were  made 
out,  signed,  sealed,  and  issued  to  the  respective  parties. 
We  say  printed,  a  press  and  types  having  been  brought 
over  in  the  Rancocus,  as  well  as  a  printer.  In  this  way, 
then,  every  male  of  full  age,  was  put  in  possession  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land,  in  fee. 

As  the  lottery  did  not  regard  the  wishes  of  parties, 
many  private  bargains  were  made,  previously  to  the  issuing 
of  the  patents,  in  order  that  friends  and  connections  might 
be  placed  near  to  each  other.  Some  sold  their  rights,  ex 
changing  with  a  difference,  while  others  sold  altogether  on 
the  Peak,  or  in  the  group,  willing  to  confine  their  posses 
sions  to  one  or  the  other  of  these  places.  In  this  manner 
Mr.  Warrington,  or  Judge  Warrington,  as  he  was  now 
called,  bought  three  fifty-acre  lots  adjoining  his  own  share 
on  the  Peak,  and  sold  his  hundred-acre  lot  in  the  group. 


332  THE  CRATER; 

The  price  established  by  these  original  sales,  would  seem 
to  give  a  value  of  ten  dollars  an  acre  to  land  on  the  Peak, 
and  of  three  dollars  an  acre  to  land  in  the  group.  Some 
lots,  however,  had  a  higher  value  than  others,  all  these 
things  being  left  to  be  determined  by  the  estimate  which 
the  colonists  placed  on  their  respective  valuations.  As 
everything  was  conducted  on  a  general  and  understood 
principle,  and  the  drawing  was  made  fairly  and  in  public, 
there  was  no  discontent;  though  some  of  the  lots  were 
certainly  a  good  deal  preferable  to  others.  The  greatest 
difference  in  value  existed  in  the  lots  in  the  group,  where 
soil  arid  water  were  often  wanted ;  though,  on  the  whole, 
much  more  of  both  was  found  than  had  been  at  first  ex 
pected.  There  were  vast  deposits  of  mud,  and  others  of 
sand,  and  Heaton  early  suggested  the  expediency  of  mix 
ing  the  two  together,  by  way  of  producing  fertility.  An 
experiment  of  this  nature  had  been  tried,  under  his  orders, 
during  the  absence  of  the  governor,  and  the  result  was  of 
the  most  satisfactory  nature ;  the  acre  thus  manured  pro 
ducing  abundantly. 

As  it  was  the  sand  that  was  to  be  conveyed  to  the  mud, 
the  toil  was  much  less  than  might  have  been  imagined. 
This  sand  usually  lay  near  the  water,  and  the  numberless 
channels  admitted  of  its  being  transported  in  boats  along 
a  vast  reach  of  shore.  Each  lot  having  a  water  front, 
every  man  might  manure  a  few  acres,  by  this  process, 
without  any  great  expense ;  and  no  sooner  were  the  rights 
determined,  and  the  decisions  of  the  parties  made  as  to 
their  final  settlements,  than  many  went  to  work  to  render 
the  cracked  and  baked  mud  left  by  the  retiring  ocean  fer 
tile  and  profitable.  Lighters  were  constructed  for  the 
purpose,  and  the  colonists  formed  themselves  into  gangs, 
labouring  in  common,  and  transporting  so  many  loads  of 
sand  to  each  levee,  as  the  banks  were  called,  though  not 
raised  as  on  the  Mississippi,  and  distributing  it  bountifully 
over  the  surface.  The  spade  was  employed  to  mix  the  two 
earths  together. 

Most  of  the  allotments  of  land,  in  the  group,  were  in  the 
immediate  neighbourhood  of  the  Reef.  As  there  were 
quite  a  hundred  of  them,  more  than  ten  thousand  acres 
of  the  islands  were  thus  taken  up,  at  the  start.  By  a 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  333 

rough  calculation,  however,  the  group  extended  east  and 
west  sixty-three  miles,  and  north  and  south  about  fifty, — 
the  Reef  being  a  very  little  west  and  a  very  little  south  of 
its  centre.  Of  this  surface  it  was  thought  something  like 
three-fourths  was  dry  land,  or  naked  rock.  This  would 
give  rather  more  than  a  million  and  a  half  of  acres  of  land; 
but,  of  this  great  extent  of  territory,  not  more  than  two- 
thirds  could  be  rendered  available  for  the  purposes  of  hus 
bandry,  for  want  of  soil,  or  the  elements  of  soil.  There 
were  places  where  the  deposit  of  mud  seemed  to  be  of  vast 
depth,  while  in  others  it  did  not  exceed  a  few  inches.  The 
same  was  true  of  the  sands,  though  the  last  was  rarely  of 
as  great  depth  as  the  mud,  or  alluvium. 

A  month  was  consumed  in  making  the  allotments,  and 
in  putting  the  different  proprietors  in  possession  of  their 
respective  estates.  Then,  indeed,  were  the  results  of  the 
property-system  made  directly  apparent.  No  sooner  was 
an  individual  put  in  possession  of  his  deed,  and  told  that 
the  lot  it  represented  was  absolutely  his  own,  to  do  what 
he  pleased  with  it,  than  he  went  to  work  with  energy  and 
filled  with  hopes,  to  turn  his  new  domains  to  account.  It 
is  true  that  education  and  intelligence,  if  they  will  only 
acquit  themselves  of  their  tasks  with  disinterested  probity, 
may  enlighten  and  instruct  the  ignorant  how  to  turn  their 
means  to  account;  but,  all  experience  proves  that  each 
individual  usually  takes  the  best  care  of  his  own  interests, 
and  that  the  system  is  wisest  which  grants  to  him  the  am 
plest  opportunity  so  to  do. 

To  work  all  went,  the  men  forming  themselves  into 
gangs,  and  aiding  each  other.  The  want  of  horses  and 
neat  cattle  was  much  felt,  more  especially  as  Heaton's  ex 
perience  set  every  one  at  the  sand,  as  the  first  step  in  a 
profitable  husbandry :  wheelbarrows,  however,  were  made 
use  of  instead  of  carts,  and  it  was  found  that  a  dozen  pair 
of  hands  could  do  a  good  deal  with  that  utensil,  in  the 
course  of  a  day.  All  sorts  of  contrivances  were  resorted 
to  in  order  to  transport  the  sand,  but  the  governor  esta 
blished  a  regular  system,  by  which  the  lighter  should  de 
liver  one  load  at  each  farm,  in  succession.  By  the  end  of 
a  month  it  was  found  that  a  good  deal  had  been  done,  the 


334  THE   CRATER; 

distances  being  short  and  the  other  facilities  constantly 
increasing  by  the  accession  of  new  boats. 

All  sorts  of  habitations  were  invented.  The  scarcity  of 
wood  in  the  group  was  a  serious  evil,  and  it  was  found  in 
dispensable  to  import  that  material.  Parts  of  Rancocus 
Island  were  well  wooded,  there  growing  among  other  trees 
a  quantity  of  noble  yellow  pines.  Bigelow  was  sent 
across  in  the  Abraham  to  set  up  a  mill,  and  to  cut  lumber. 
There  being  plenty  of  water-power,  the  mill  was  soon  got 
at  work,  and  a  lot  of  excellent  plank,  boards,  &c.,  was 
shipped  in  the  schooner  for  the  crater.  Shingle-makers 
were  also  employed,  the  cedar  abounding,  as  well  as  the 
pine.  The  transportation  to  the  coast  was  the  point  of 
difficulty  on  Rancocus  Island  as  well  as  elsewhere ;  none 
of  the  cattle  being  yet  old  enough  to  be  used.  Socrates 
had  three  pair  of  yearling  steers,  and  one  of  two  years  old 
breaking,  but  it  was  too  soon  to  set  either  at  work.  With 
the  last,  a  little  very  light  labour  was  done,  but  it  was  more 
to  train  the  animals,  than  with  any  other  object. 

On  Rancocus  Island,  however,  Bigelow  had  made  a  very 
ingenious  canal,  that  was  of  vast  service  in  floating  logs  to 
the  mill.  The  dam  made  a  long  narrow  pond  that  pene 
trated  two  or  three  miles  up  a  gorge  in  the  mountains,  and 
into  this  dam  the  logs  were  rolled  down  the  declivities, 
which  were  steep  enough  to  carry  anything  into  the  water. 
When  cut  into  lumber,  it  was  found  that  the  stream  below 
the  mill,  would  carry  small  rafts  down  to  the  sea. 

While  all  these  projects  were  in  the  course  of  operation, 
the  governor  did  not  forget  the  high  interests  connected 
with  his  foreign  relations;  Waally  was  to  be  looked  to, 
and  Ooroony's  son  to  be  righted.  The  council  was  una 
nimously  of  opinion  that  sound  policy  required  such  an 
exhibition  of  force  on  the  part  of  the  colony,  as  should 
make  a  lasting  impression  on  their  turbulent  neighbours. 
An  expedition  was  accordingly  fitted  out,  in  which  the 
Mermaid,  the  Abraham,  and  a  new  pilot-boat  built  schoo 
ner  of  fifty  tons  burthen,  were  employed.  This  new 
schooner  was  nearly  ready  for  launching  when  the  Ranco 
cus  returned,  and  was  put  into  the  water  for  the  occasion. 
She  had  been  laid  down  in  the  cove,  where  Bigelow  had 
found  room  for  a  sufficient  yard,  and  where  timber  was 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  335 

nearer  at  hand,  than  on  the  Reef.  As  Rancocus  Island 
supplied  the  most  accessible  and  the  best  lumber,  the 
council  had  determined  to  make  a  permanent  establish 
ment  on  it,  for  the  double  purposes  of  occupation  and 
building  vessels.  As  the  resources  of  that  island  were  de 
veloped,  it  was  found  important  on  other  accounts,  also. 
Excellent  clay  for  bricks  was  found,  as  was  lime-stone,  in 
endless  quantities.  For  the  purposes  of  agriculture,  the 
place  was  nearly  useless,  there  not  being  one  thousand 
acres  of  good  arable  land  in  the  whole  island  ;  but  the 
mountains  were  perfect  mines  of  treasure  in  the  way  of 
necessary  supplies  of  the  sorts  mentioned. 

A  brick-yard  was  immediately  cleared  and  formed,  and 
a  lime-kiln  constructed.  Among  the  colonists,  it  was  easy 
to  find  men  accustomed  to  work  in  all  these  familiar 
branches.  The  American  can  usually  turn  his  hand  to  a 
dozen  different  pursuits ;  and,  though  he  may  not  abso 
lutely  reach  perfection  in  either,  he  is  commonly  found 
useful  and  reasonably  expert  in  all.  Before  the  governor 
sailed  on  his  expedition  against  Waally,  a  brick-kiln  and  a 
lime-kiln  were  nearly  built,  and  a  vast  quantity  of  lumber 
had  been  carried  over  to  the  Reef.  As  sandal-wood  had 
been  collecting  for  the  twelve  months  of  her  late  absence, 
the  Rancocus  had  also  been  filled  up,  and  had  taken  in  a 
new  cargo  for  Canton.  It  was  not  the  intention  of  the 
governor  to  command  his  ship  this  voyage ;  but  he  gave 
her  to  Saunders,  who  was  every  way  competent  to  the  trust. 
When  all  was  ready,  the  Rancocus,  .the  Mermaid,  the 
Abraham,  and  the  Anne,  as  the  new  pilot-boat  schooner 
was  called,  sailed  for  Betto's  group;  it  being  a  part  of  the 
governor's  plan  to  use  the  ship,  in  passing,  with  a  view  to 
intimidate  his  enemies.  In  consequence  of  the  revolution 
that  had  put  Waally  up  again,  every  one  of  the  Kannakas 
who  had  gone  out  in  the  Rancocus  on  her  last  voyage, 
refused  to  go  home,  knowing  that  they  would  at  once  be 
impressed  into  Waally's  service ;  and  they  all  now  cheer 
fully  shipped  anew,  for  a  second  voyage  to  foreign  lands. 
By  this  time,  these  men  were  very  useful ;  and  the  governor 
had  a  project  for  bringing  up  a  number  of  the  lads  of  the 
islands,  and  of  making  use  of  them  in  the  public  service. 


336  THE   CRATER; 

This  scheme  was  connected  with  his  contemplated  success, 
and  formed  no  small  part  of  the  policy  of  the  day. 

The  appearance  of  so  formidable  a  force  as  was  now 
brought  against  Waally,  reduced  that  turbulent  chief  to 
terms  without  a  battle.  About  twenty  of  his  canoes  had 
got  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  fleet  in  a  squall,  while 
returning  from  the  unsuccessful  attempt  on  the  Reef,  and 
they  were  never  heard  of  more ;  or,  if  heard  of,  it  was  in 
uncertain  rumours,  which  gave  an  account  of  the  arrival 
of  three  or  four  canoes  at  some  islands  a  long  way  to-lee 
ward,  with  a  handful  of  half-starved  warriors  on  board.  It 
is  supposed  that  all  the  rest  perished  at  sea.  This  disaster 
had  rendered  Waally  unpopular  among  the  friends  of  ihose 
who  were  lost ;  and  that  unpopularity  was  heightened  by 
the  want  of  success  in  the  expedition  itself.  Success  is  all 
in  all,  with  the  common  mind  ;  and  we  daily  see  the  vulgar 
shouting  at  the  heels  of  those  whom  they  are  ready  to  cru 
cify  at  the  first  turn  of  fortune.  In  this  good  land  of  ours, 
popularity  adds  to  its  more  worthless  properties  the  sub 
stantial  result  of  power ;  and  it  is  not  surprising  that  so 
many  forget  their  God  in  the  endeavour  to  cotirt  the  peo 
ple.  In  time,  however,  all  of  these  persons  of  mistaken 
ambition  come  to  exclaim,  with  Shakspeare's  Wolsey — 

"  Had  I  but  served  my  God  with  half  the  zeal 
I  served  my  king,  he  would  not  in  mine  age 
Have  left  me  naked  to  mine  enemies." 

Waally's  power,  already  tottering  through  the  influence 
of  evil  fortune,  crumbled  entirely  before  the  force  Gover 
nor  VVoolston  now  brought  against  it.  Although  the  latter 
had  but  forty  whites  with  him,  they  came  in  ships,  and 
provided  with  cannon;  and  not  a  chief  dreamed  of  stand 
ing  by  the  offender,  in  this  his  hour  of  need.  Waally  had 
the  tact  to  comprehend  his  situation,  and  the  wisdom  to 
submit  to  his  fortune.  He  sent  a  messenger  to  the  gover 
nor  with  a  palm-branch,  offering  to  restore  young  Ooroony 
to  all  his  father's  authority,  and  to  confine  himself  to  his 
strictly  inherited  dominions.  Such,  in  fact,  was  the  basis 
of  the  treaty  that  was  now  made,  though  hostages  were 
taken  for  its  fulfilment.  To  each  condition  Waally  con- 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  337 

sented ;  and  everything  was  settled  to  the  entire  satisfaction 
of  the  whites,  and  to  the  honour  and  credit  of  young 
Ooroony.  The  result  was,  in  substance,  as  we  shall  now 
record. 

In  the  first  place,  one  hundred  lads  were  selected  and 
handed  over  to  the  governor,  as  so  many  apprentices  to  the 
sea.  These  young  Kannakas  were  so  many  hostages  for  the 
good  behaviour  of  their  parents ;  while  the  parents,  always 
within  reach  of  the  power  of  the  colonists,  were  so  many 
hostages  for  the  good  behaviour  of  the  Kannakas.  Touch 
ing  the  last,  however,  the  governor  had  very  few  misgiv 
ings,  since  he  believed  it  very  possible  so  to  treat,  and  so 
to  train  them,  as  to  make  them  fast  friends.  In  placing 
them  on  board  the  different  vessels,  therefore,  rigid  instruc 
tions  were  given  to  their  officers  to  be  kind  to  these  young 
sters;  and  each  and  all  were  to  be  taught  to  read,  and 
instructed  in  the  Christian  religion.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Horn- 
blower  took  great  interest  in  this  last  arrangement,  as  did 
half  the  females  of  the  colony.  Justice  and  kind  treatment, 
in  fact,  produced  their  usual  results  in  the  cases  of  these 
hundred  youths ;  every  one  of  whom  got  to  be,  in  the  end, 
far  more  attached  to  the  Reef,  and  its  customs,  than  to 
their  own  islands  and  their  original  habits.  The  sea,  no 
doubt,  contributed  its  share  to  this  process  of  civilization; 
for  it  is  ever  found  that  the  man  who  gets  a  thorough  taste 
for  that  element,  is  loth  to  quit  it  again  for  terra  Jirma. 

One  hundred  able-bodied  men  were  added  to  the  recruits 
that  the  governor  obtained  in  Betto's  group.  They  were 
taken  as  hired  labourers,  and  not  as  hostages.  Beads  and 
old  iron  were  to  be  their  pay,  with  fish-hooks,  and  such 
other  trifles  as  had  a  value  in  their  eyes;  and  their  engage 
ment  was  limited  to  two  months.  There  was  a  disposition 
among  a  few  of  the  colonists  to  make  slaves  of  these  men, 
and  to  work  their  lands  by  means  of  a  physical  force  ob 
tained  in  Betto's  group ;  but  to  this  scheme  the  council 
would  not  lend  itself  for  a  moment.  The  governor  well 
knew  that  the  usefulness,  virtue,  and  moral  condition  of 
his  people,  depended  on  their  being  employed ;  and  he  had 
DO  wish  to  undermine  he  permanent  prosperity  of  the 
29 


338  THE   CRATER; 

colony,  by  resorting  to  an  expedient  that  might  do  well 
enough  for  a  short  time,  but  which  would  certainly  bring 
its  own  punishment  in  the  end. 

Still,  an  accession  of  physical  force,  properly  directed, 
would  be  of  great  use  in  this  early  age  of  the  colony.  The 
labourers  were  accordingly  engaged;  but  this  was  done  by 
the  government,  which  not  only  took  the  control  of  the 
men,  but  which  also  engaged  to  see  them  paid  the  promised 
remuneration.  Another  good  was  also  anticipated  from 
this  arrangement.  The  two  groups  must  exist  as  friends 
or  as  enemies.  So  long  as  young  Ooroony  reigned,  it  was 
thought  there  would  be  little  difficulty  in  maintaining  ami 
cable  relations ;  and  it  was  hoped  that  the  intercourse  cre 
ated  by  this  arrangement,  aided  by  the  trade  in  sandal- 
wood,  might  have  the  effect  to  bind  the  natives  to  the  whites 
by  the  tie  of  interest. 

The  vessels  lay  at  Betto's  group  a  fortnight,  completing 
all  the  arrangements  made ;  though  the  Rancocus  sailed 
on  her  voyage  as  soon  as  the  terms  of  the  treaty  were 
agreed  on,  and  the  Anne  was  sent  back  to  the  Reef  with 
the  news  that  the  war  had  terminated.  As  for  Waally,  he 
was  obliged  to  place  his  favourite  son  in  the  hands  of  young 
Ooroony,  who  held  the  youthful  chief  as  a  hostage  for  his 
father's  good  behaviour. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  339 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

«  Thou  shalt  seek  the  beach  of  sand 
Where  the  water  bounds  the  elfin  land ; 
Thou  shall  watch  the  oozy  brine 
Till  the  sturgeon  leaps  in  the  bright  moonshine, 
Then  dart  the  glistening  arch  below, 
And  catch  a  drop  from  his  silver  bow ; 
The  water-sprites  will  wield  their  arms, 
And  dash  around,  with  roar  and  rave, 
And  vain  are  the  woodland  spirit's  charms, 
They  are  the  imps  that  rule  the  wave. 
Yet  trust  thee  in  thy  single  might; 
If  thy  heart  be  pure,  and  thy  spirit  right, 
Thou  shalt  win  the  warlike  fight." 

DRAKE. 

A  TWELVEMONTH  passed,  after  the  return  of  the  expedi 
tion  against  Betto's  group,  without  the  occurrence  of  any 
one  very  marked  event.  Within  that  time,  Bridget  made 
Mark  the  father  of  a  fine  boy,  and  Anne  bore  her  fourth 
child  to  Heaton.  The  propagation  of  the  human  species, 
indeed,  flourished  marvellously,  no  less  than  seventy-eight 
children  having  been  born  in  the  course  of  that  single 
year.  There  were  a  few  deaths,  only  one  among  the  adults, 
the  result  of  an  accident,  the  health  of  the  colony  having 
been  excellent.  An  enumeration,  made  near  the  close  of 
the  year,  showed  a  total  of  three  hundred  and  seventy-nine 
souls,  including  those  absent  in  the  Rancocus,  and  ex 
cluding  the  Kannakas. 

As  for  these  Kannakas,  the  results  of  their  employment 
quite  equalled  the  governor's  expectations.  They  would 
not  labour  like  civilized  men,  it  is  true,  nor  was  it  easy  to 
make  them  use  tools ;  but  at  lifts,  and  drags,  and  heavy 
work,  they  could  be,  and  were,  made  to  do  a  vast  deal. 
The  first  great  object  of  the  governor  had  been  to  get  his 
people  all  comfortably  housed,  beneath  good  roofs,  and  out 
of  the  way  of  the  rains.  Fortunately  there  were  no  decayed 


340  THE   CRATER; 

vegetable  substances  in  the  group,  to  produce  fevers;  and 
so  long  as  the  person  could  be  kept  dry,  there  was  little 
danger  to  the  health. 

Four  sorts,  or  classes,  of  houses  were  erected,  each  man 
being  left  to  choose  for  himself,  with  the  understanding 
that  he  was  to  receive  a  certain  amount,  in  value,  fro"i  the 
commonwealth,  by  contribution  in  labour,  or  in  materials. 
All  beyond  that  amount  was  to  be  paid  for.  To  equalize 
advantages,  a  tariff  was  established,  as  to  the  value  of 
labour  and  materials.  These  materials  consisted  of  lum 
ber,  including  shingles,  stone,  lime  and  bricks ;  bricks 
burned,  as  well  as  those  which  were  unburned,  or  adobe. 
Nails  were  also  delivered  from  the  public  store,  free  of 
charge. 

Of  course,  no  one  at  first  thought  of  building  very  largely. 
Small  kitchens  were  all  that  were  got  up,  at  the  commence 
ment,  and  they  varied  in  size,  according  to  the  means  of 
their  owners,  as  much  as  they  differed  in  materials.  kSome 
built  of  wood ;  some  of  stones ;  some  of  regular  bricks  ; 
and  some  of  adobe.  All  did  very  well,  but  the  stone  was 
found  to  be  much  the  preferable  material,  especially  where 
the  plastering  within  was  furred  off  from  the  walls.  These 
stones  came  from  Rancocus  Island,  where  they  were  found 
in  inexhaustible  quantities,  partaking  of  the  character  of 
tufa.  The  largest  of  them  were  landed  at' the  Reef,  the 
loading  and  unloading  being  principally  done  by  the  Kan- 
nakas,  while  the  smallest  were  delivered  at  different  points 
along  the  channel,  according  to  the  wishes  of  the  owners 
of  the  land.  More  than  a  hundred  dwellings  were  erected 
in  the  course  of  the  few  months  immediately  succeeding 
the  arrival  of  the  immigrants.  About  half  were  on  the 
Peak,  and  the  remainder  were  in  the  group.  It  is  true, 
no  one  of  all  these  dwellings  was  large ;  but  each  was  com 
fortable,  and  fully  answered  the  purpose  of  protection 
against  the  rain.  A  roof  of  cedar  shingles  was  tight,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  and  what  was  more,  it  was  lasting.  Some 
of  the  buildings  were  sided  with  these  shingles;  though 
clap-boards  were  commonly  used  for  that  purpose.  The 
adobe  answered  very  well  when  securely  roofed,  though  it 
was  thought  the  unburnt  brick  absorbed  more  moisture 
than  the  brick  which  had  been  burned. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  341 

The  largest  of  all  the  private  dwellings  thus  erected, 
was  thirty  feet  square,  and  the  smallest  was  fifteen.  The 
last  had  its  cooking  apartment  under  a  shed,  however,  de 
tached  from  the  house.  Most  of  the  ovens  were  thus 
placed;  and  in  many  instances  the  chimneys  stood  entirely 
without  the  buildings,  even  when  they  were  attached  to 
them.  There  was  but  one  house  of  two  stories,  and  that 
was  John  Pennock's,  who  had  sufficient  means  to  construct 
such  a  building.  As  for  the  governor,  he  did  not  com 
mence  building  at  all,  until  nearly  every  one  else  was 
through,  when  he  laid  the  corner-stones  of  two  habitations ; 
one  on  the  Peak,  which  was  his  private  property,  standing 
on  his  estate  ;  and  the  other  on  the  Reef,  which  was  strictly 
intended  to  be  a  Government,  or  Colony  House.  The 
first  was  of  brick,  and  the  last  of  stone,  and  of  great  so 
lidity,  being  intended  as  a  sort  of  fortress.  The  private 
dwelling  was  only  a  story  and  a  half  high,  but  large  on  the 
ground  for  that  region,  measuring  sixty  feet  square.  The 
government  building  was  much  larger,  measuring  two 
hundred  feet  in  length,  by  sixty  feet  in  depth.  This  spa 
cious  edifice,  however,  was  not  altogether  intended  for  a 
dwelling  for  the  governor,  but  was  so  arranged  as  to  con 
tain  great  quantities  of  public  property  in  its  basement, 
and  to  accommodate  the  courts,  and  all  the  public  offices 
on  the  first  floor.  It  had  an  upper  story,  but  that  was  left 
unfinished  and  untenanted  for  years,  though  fitted  with 
arrangements  for  defence.  Fortunately,  cellars  were  little 
wanted  in  that  climate,  for  it  was  riot  easy  to  have  one  in 
the  group.  It  is  true,  that  Pennock  caused  one  to  be 
blown  out  with  gun-powder,  under  his  dwelling,  though 
every  one  prophesied  that  it  would  soon  be  full  of  water. 
It  proved  to  be  dry,  notwithstanding;  and  a  very  good 
cellar  it  was,  being  exceedingly  useful  against  the  heats, 
though  of  cold  there  was  none  to  guard  against. 

The  Colony  House  stood  directly  opposite  to  the  draw 
bridge,  being  placed  there  for  the  purposes  of  defence,  as 
well  as  to  have  access  to  the  spring.  A  want  of  water  was 
rather  an  evil  on  the  Reef;  not  that  the  sands  did  not  fur 
nish  an  ample  supply,  and  that  of  the  most  delicious  quality, 
but  it  had  to  be  carried  to  inconvenient  distances.  In 
general,  water  was  found  in  sufficient  quantities  and  in 
* 


342  THE  CRATER; 

suitable  places,  among  the  group ;  but,  at  the  Reef,  thera 
was  certainly  this  difficulty  to  contend  with.  As  the  go 
vernor  caused  his  brother,  the  surveyor-general,  to  lay  out 
a  town  on  the  Reef,  it  was  early  deemed  necessary  to  make 
some  provision  against  this  evil.  A  suitable  place  was 
selected,  and  a  cistern  was  blown  out  of  the  rock,  into 
which  all  the  water  that  fell  on  the  roof  of  Colony  House 
was  led.  This  reservoir,  when  full,  contained  many  thou 
sand  gallons ;  and  when  once  full,  it  was  found  that  the 
rains  were  sufficient  to  prevent  its  being  very  easily 
emptied. 

But  the  greatest  improvement  that  was  made  on  the 
Reef,  after  all,  was  in  the  way  of  soil.  As  for  the  crater, 
that,  by  this  time,  was  a  mass  of  verdure,  among  which  a 
thousand  trees  were  not  only  growing,  but  flourishing. 
This  was  as  true  of  its  plain,  as  of  its  mounds ;  and  of  its 
mounds,  as  of  its  plain.  But  the  crater  was  composed  of 
materials  very  different  from  the  base  of  the  Reef.  The 
former  was  of  tufa,  so  far  as  it  was  rock  at  all ;  while  the 
latter  was,  in  the  main,  pure  lava.  Nevertheless,  some 
thing  like  a  soil  began  to  form  even  on  the  Reef,  purely 
by  the  accessions  caused  though  its  use  by  man.  Great 
attention  was  paid  to  collecting  everything  that  could  con 
tribute  to  the  formation  of  earth,  in  piles ;  and  these  piles 
were  regularly  removed  to  such  cavities,  or  inequalities  in 
the  surface  of  the  rock,  as  would  be  most  likely  to  retain 
their  materials  when  spread.  In  this  way  many  green 
patches  had  been  formed,  and,  in  a  good  many  instances, 
trees  had  been  set  out,  in  spots  where  it  was  believed  they 
could  find  sufficient  nourishment.  But,  no  sooner  had  the 
governor  decided  to  build  on  the  Reef,  and  to  make  his 
capital  there,  than  he  set  about  embellishing  the  place  sys 
tematically.  Whenever  a  suitable  place  could  be  found, 
in  what  was  intended  for  Colony  House  grounds,  a  space 
of  some  ten  acres  in  the  rear  of  the  building,  he  put  in  the 
drill,  and  tyew  out  rock.  The  fragments  of  stone  were 
used  about  the  building;  and  the  place  soon  presented  a 
ragged,  broken  surface,  of  which  one  might  well  despair 
of  making  anything.  By  perseverance,  however,  and  still 
more  by  skill  and  judgment,. the  whole  area  was  lowered 
more  than  a  foot,  and  in  many  places,  where  nature  assisted 


OK,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  343 

the  work,  it  was  lowered  several  feet.  It  was  a  disputed 
question,  indeed,  whether  stone  for  the  building  could  not 
be  obtained  here,  by  blasting,  cheaper  and  easier,  than  by 
transporting  it  from  Rancocus  Island.  Enough  was  pro 
cured  in  this  way  not  only  to  construct  the  'building,  but 
to  enclose  the  grounds  with  a  sufficient  wall.  When  all 
was  got  off  that  was  wanted,  boat-loads  of  mud  and  sand 
were  brought  by  Kannakas,  and  deposited  in  the  cavity. 
This  was  a  great  work  for  such  a  community,  though  it 
proceeded  faster  than,  at  first,  one  might  have  supposed. 
The  materials  were  very  accessible,  and  the  distances 
short,  which  greatly  facilitated  the  labour,  though  unload 
ing  was  a  task  of  some  gravity.  The  walls  of  the  house 
were  got  up  in  about  six  months  after  the  work  was  com 
menced,  and  the  building  was  roofed;  but,  though  the 
gardeners  were  set  to  work  as  soon  as  the  stones  were  out 
of  the  cavities,  they  had  not  filled  more  than  two  acres  at 
the  end  of  the  period  mentioned. 

Determined  to  make  an  end  of  this  great  work  at  once, 
the  Abraham  was  sent  over  to  young  Ooroony  to  ask  for 
assistance.  Glad  enough  was  that  chief  to  grant  what  was 
demanded  of  him,  and  he  came  himself,  at  the  head  of  five 
hundred  men,  to  aid  his  friend  in  finishing  this  task.  Even 
this  strong  body  of  labourers  was  busy  two  months  longer, 
before  the  governor  pronounced  the  great  end  accomplished. 
Then  he  dismissed  his  neighbours  with  such  gifts  and  pay 
as  sent  away  everybody  contented.  Many  persons  thought 
the  experiment  of  bringing  so  many  savages  to  the  Reef 
somewhat  hazardous ;  but  no  harm  ever  came  of  it.  On 
the  contrary,  the  intercourse  had  a  good  effect,  by  making 
the  two  people  better  acquainted  with  each  other.  The 
governor  had  a  great  faculty  in  the  management  of  those 
wild  beings.  He  not  only  kept  them  in  good-humour,  but 
what  was  far  more  difficult,  he  made  them  work.  They 
were  converted  into  a  sort  of  Irish  for  his  colony.  It  is 
true,  one  civilized  man  could  do  more  than  three  of  the 
Kannakas,  but  the  number  of  the  last  was  so  large  that  they 
accomplished  a  great  deal  during  their  stay. 

Nor  would  the  governor  have  ventured  to  let  such  dan 
gerous  neighbours  into  the  group,  had  there  not  been  still 
more  imposing  mysteries  connected  with  the  Peak,  into 


344  THE   CRATER; 

which  they  were  not  initiated.  Even  young  Ooroony  was 
kept  in  ignorance  of  what  was  to  be  found  on  that  dreaded 
island.  He  saw  vessels  going  and  coming,  knew  that  the 
governor  often  went  there,  saw  strange  faces  appearing  oc 
casionally  on  the  Reef,  that  were  understood  to  belong  to 
the  unknown  land,  and  probably  to  a  people  who  were 
much  more  powerful  than  those  who  were  in  direct  com 
munication  with  the  natives. 

The  governor  induced  his  Kannakas  to  work  by  interest 
ing  them  in  the  explosions  of  the  blasts,  merely  to  enjoy 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  cart-load  of  rock  torn  from  its  bed. 
One  of  these  men  would  work  at  a  drill  all  day,  and  then 
carry  off  the  fragments  to  be  placed  in  the  walls,  after  he 
had  had  his  sport  in  this  operation  of  blasting.  They 
seemed  never  to  tire  of  the  fun,  and  it  was  greatly  ques 
tioned  if  half  as  much  labour  could  have  been  got  out  of 
them  at  any  other  work,  as  at  this. 

A  good  deal  of  attention  was  paid  to  rendering  the  soil 
of  the  colony  garden  fertile,  as  well  as  deep.  In  its  shal 
lowest  places  it  exceeded  a  foot  in  depth,  and  in  the  deepest, 
spots  where  natural  fissures  had  aided  the  drill,  it  required 
four  or  five  feet  of  materials  to  form  the  level.  These  deep 
places  were  all  marked,  and  were  reserved  for  the  support 
of  trees.  Not  only  was  sand  freely  mixed  with  the  mud, 
or  muck,  but  sea-weed  in  large  quantities  was  laid  near  the 
surface,  and  finally  covered  with  the  soil.  In  this  manner 
was  a  foundation  made  that  could  not  fail  to  sustain  a  gar 
den  luxuriant  in  its  products,  aided  by  the  genial  heat  and 
plentiful  rains  of  the  climate.  Shrubs,  flowers,  grass,  and 
ornamental  trees,  however,  were  all  the  governor  aimed  at 
in  these  public  grounds;  the  plain  of  the  crater  furnishing 
fruit  and  vegetables  in  an  abundance,  as  yet  far  exceeding 
the  wants  of  the  whole  colony.  The  great  danger,  indeed, 
that  the  governor  most  apprehended,  was  that  the  benefi 
cent  products  of  the  region  would  render  his  people  indo 
lent;  an  idle  nation  becoming,  almost  infallibly,  vicious  as 
well  as  ignorant.  It  was  with  a  view  to  keep  the  colony 
on  the  advance,  and  to  maintain  a  spirit  of  improvement 
that  so  much  attention  was  so  early  bestowed  on  what 
might  otherwise  be  regarded  as  purely  intellectual  pursuits 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  345 

which,  by  creating  new  wants,  might  induce  their  subjects 
to  devise  the  means  of  supplying  them. 

The  governor  judged  right ;  for  tastes  are  commonly  ac 
quired  by  imitation,  and  when  thus  acquired,  they  take  the 
strongest  hold  of  those  who  cultivate  them.  The  effect 
produced  by  the  Colony  Garden,  or  public  grounds,  was 
such  as  twenty-fold  to  return  the  cost  and  labour  bestowed 
on  it.  The  sight  of  such  an  improvement  set  both  men 
and  women  to  work  throughout  the  group,  and  not  a  dwell 
ing  was  erected  in  the  town,  that  the  drill  did  not  open  the 
rock,  and  mud  and  sand  form  a  garden.  Nor  did  the  go 
vernor  himself  confine  his  horticultural  improvements  to 
the  gardens  mentioned.  Before  he  sent  away  his  legion  of 
five  hundred,  several  hundred  blasts  were  made  in  isolated 
spots  on  the  Reef;  places  where  the  natural  formation  fa 
voured  such  a  project ;  and  holes  were  formed  that  would 
receive  a  boat-load  of  soil  each.  In  these  places  trees  were 
set  out,  principally  cocoa-nuts,  and  such  other  plants  as 
were  natural  to  the  situation,  due  care  being  taken  to  see 
that  each  had  sufficient  nourishment. 

The  result  of  all  this  industry  was  to  produce  a  great 
change  in  the  state  of  things  at  the  Reef.  In  addition  to 
the  buildings  erected,  and  to  the  gardens  made  and  planted, 
within  the  town  itself,  the  whole  surface  of  the  island  was 
more  or  less  altered.  Verdure  soon  made  its  appearance 
in  places  where,  hitherto,  nothing  but  naked  rock  had  been 
seen,  and  trees  began  to  cast  their  shades  over  the  young 
arid  delicious  grasses.  As  for  the  town  itself,  it  was  cer 
tainly  no  great  matter;  containing  about  twenty  dwellings, 
and  otherwise  being  of  very  modest  pretensions.  Those 
who  dwelt  there  were  principally  such  mechanics  as  found 
it  convenient  to  be  at  the  centre  of  the  settlement,  some 
half  a  dozen  persons  employed  about  the  warehouses  of 
the  merchants,  a  few  officials  of  the  government,  and  the 
families  of  those  who  depended  mainly  on  the  sea  for  their 
support.  Each  and  all  of  these  heads  of  families  had 
drawn  their  lots,  both  in  the  group  and  on  the  Peak, 
though  some  had  sold  their  rights  the  better  to  get  a  good 
start  in  their  particular  occupations.  The  merchants, 
however,  established  themselves  on  the  Reef,  as  a  matter 
of  necessity,  each  causing  a  warehouse  to  be  constructed 


346  THE   CRATER; 

near  the  water,  with  tackles  and  all  the  usual  conveniences 
for  taking  in  and  delivering  goods.  Each  also  had  his 
dwelling  near  at  hand.  As  these  persons  had  come  well 
provided  for  the  Indian  trade  in  particular,  having  large 
stocks  of  such  cheap  and  coarse  articles  as  took  with  the 
natives,  they  were  already  driving  a  profitable  business,  re 
ceiving  considerable  quantities  of  sandal-wood  in  exchange 
for  their  goods. 

It  is  worthy  of  being  mentioned,  that  the  governor  and 
council  early  passed  a  sort  of  navigation  act,  the  effect  of 
which  was  to  secure  the  carrying  trade  to  the  colony.  The 
motive,  however,  was  more  to  keep  the  natives  within  safe 
limits,  than  to  monopolize  the  profits  of  the  seas.  By  the 
provisions  of  this  law,  no  canoe  could  pass  from  Betto's 
group  to  either  of  the  islands  of  the  colony,  without  ex 
press  permission  from  the  governor.  In  order  to  carry  on 
the  trade,  the  parties  met  on  specified  days  at  Ooroony's 
village,  and  there  made  their  exchanges;  vessels  being 
sent  from  the  Reef  to  bring  away  the  sandal-wood.  With 
a  view  to  the  final  transportation  of  the  last  to  a  market, 
Saunders  had  been  instructed  to  purchase  a  suitable  vessel, 
which  was  to  return  with  the  Rancocus,  freighted  with 
such  heavy  and  .cheap  implements  as  were  most  wanted  in 
the  colony,  including  cows  and  mares  in  particular.  Phy 
sical  force,  in  the  shape  of  domestic  animals,  was  greatly 
wanted ;  and  it  was  perhaps  the  most  costly  of  all  the  sup 
plies  introduced  into  the  settlements.  Of  horned  cattle 
there  were  already  about  five-and-twenty  head  in  the  co 
lony —  enough  to  make  sure  of  the  breed;  but  they  were 
either  cows,  steers  too  young  to  be  yet  of  much  use,  and 
calves.  Nothing  was  killed,  of  course;  but  so  much  time 
must  pass  before  the  increase  would  give  the  succour 
wanted,  that  the  governor  went  to  unusual  expense  and 
trouble  to  make  additions  to  the  herd  from  abroad. 

As  for  the  horses,  but  three  had  been  brought  over,  two 
of  which  were  mares.  The  last  had  foaled  twice;  and 
there  were  four  colts,  all  doing  well,  but  wanting  age  to 
be  useful.  All  the  stock  of  this  character  was  kept  on  the 
Peak,  in  order  to  secure  it  from  invaders;  and  the  old 
animals,  even  to  the  cows,  were  lightly  worked  there,  doing 
a  vast  deal  that  would  otherwise  remain  undone.  It  was 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  347 

o  obviously  advantageous  to  increase  the  amount  of  this 
sort  of  force,  that  Saunders  had  strict  orders  to  purchase 
the  vessel  mentioned,  and  to  bring  over  as  many  beasts  as 
he  could  conveniently  and  safely  stow.  With  this  object 
in  view,  he  was  directed  to  call  in,  on  the  western  side  of 
Cape  Horn,  and  to  make  his  purchases  in  South  America. 
The  horned  cattle  might  not  be  so  good,  coming  from  such 
a  quarter,  but  the  dangers  of  doubling  the  Cape  would  be 
avoided. 

While  making  these  general  and  desultory  statements' 
touching  the  progress  of  the  colony,  it  may  be  well  to  say 
a  word  of  Rancocus  Island.  The  establishments  neces 
sary  there,  to  carry  on  the  mills,  lime  and  brick  kilns,  and 
the  stone-quarry,  induced  the  governor  to  erect  a  small 
work,  in  which  the  persons  employed  in  that  out-colony 
might  take  refuge,  in  the  event  of  an  invasion.  This  was 
done  accordingly ;  and  two  pieces  of  artillery  were  regu 
larly  mounted  on  it.  Nor  was  the  duty  of  fortifying  ne 
glected  elsewhere.  As  for  the  Peak,  it  was  not  deemed 
necessary  to  do  more  than  improve  a  little  upon  nature ; 
the  colony  being  now  too  numerous  to  suppose  that  it 
could  not  defend  the  cove  against  any  enemy  likely  to  land 
there,  should  the  entrance  of  that  secret  haven  be  detected. 
On  the  Reef,  however,  it  was  a  very  different  matter.  That 
place  was  as  accessible  as  the  other  was  secure.  The  con 
struction  of  so  many  stout  stone  edifices  contributed  largely 
to  the  defence  of  the  town ;  but  the  governor  saw  the  ne 
cessity  of  providing  the  means  of  commanding  the  ap 
proaches  by  water.  Four  distinct  passages,  each  corre 
sponding  to  a  cardinal  point  of  the  compass,  led  from  the 
crater  out  to  sea.  As  the  south  passage  terminated  at  the 
bridge,  it  was  sufficiently  commanded  by  the  Colony  House. 
But  all  the  others  were  wider,  more  easy  of  approach,  and 
less  under  the  control  of  the  adjacent  islands.  But  the 
Summit  had  points  whence  each  might  be  raked  by  guns 
properly  planted,  and  batteries  were  accordingly  con 
structed  on  these  points;  the  twelve-pounder  being  used 
for  their  armaments.  Each  battery  had  two  guns;  and 
when  all  was  completed,  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  governor 
that  the  post  was  sufficiently  well  fortified.  In  order,  how 
ever,  to  give  additional  security,  the  crater  was  tabooed  to 


348  THE  CRATER; 

all  the  Kannakas ;  not  one  of  whom  was  permitted  ever  to 
enter  it,  or  even  to  go  near  it. 

But  defence,  and  building,  and  making  soil,  did  not  al 
together  occupy  the  attention  of  the  colonists  during  these 
important  twelve  months.  Both  the  brothers  of  the  go 
vernor  got  married ;  the  oldest,  or  the  attorney-general,  to 
the  oldest  sister  of  John  Pennock,  and  the  youngest  to  a  sis 
ter  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hornblower.  It  was  in  this  simple  colo 
ny,  as  it  ever  has  been,  and  ever  will  be  in  civilized  society, 
that,  in  forming  matrimonial  connections,  like  looks  for 
like.  There  was  no  person,  or  family  at  the  Reef  which 
could  be  said  to  belong  to  the  highest  social  class  of  Ame 
rica,  if,  indeed,  any  one  could  rank  as  high  as  a  class 
immediately  next  to  the  highest ;  yet,  distinctions  existed 
which  were  maintained  usefully,  and  without  a  thought  of 
doing  them  away.  The  notion  that  money  alone  makes 
those  divisions  into  castes  which  are  everywhere  to  be 
found,  and  which  will  probably  continue  to  be  found  as 
long  as  society  itself  exists,  is  a  very  vulgar  and  fallacious 
notion.  It  comes  from  the  difficulty  of  appreciating  those 
tastes  and  qualities  which,  not  possessing  ourselves,  are  so 
many  unknown  and  mysterious  influences.  In  marrying 
Sarah  Pennock,  John  Woolston  was  slightly  conscious  of 
making  a  little  sacrifice  in  these  particulars,  but  she  was  a 
very  pretty,  modest  girl,  of  a  suitable  age,  and  the  circle  to 
choose  from,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  very  limited.  In 
America  that  connection  might  not  have  taken  place ;  but, 
at  the  crater,  it  was  all  well  enough,  and  it  turned  out  to 
be  a  very  happy  union.  Had  the  sacrifice  of  habits  and 
tastes  been  greater,  this  might  not  have  been  the  fact,  for 
it  is  certain  that  our  happiness  depends  more  on  the  sub 
ordinate  qualities  and  our  cherished  usages,  than  on  prin 
ciples  themselves.  It  is  difficult  to  suppose  that  any  refined 
woman,  for  instance,  can  ever  thoroughly  overcome  her  dis 
gust  for  a  man  who  habitually  blows  his  nose  with  his  fingers, 
or  that  one  bred  a  gentleman  can  absolutely  overlook,  even 
in  a  wife,  the  want  of  the  thousand  and  one  little  lady-like 
habits,  which  render  the  sex  perhaps  more  attractive  than 
do  their  personal  charms. 

Several  other  marriages  took  place,  the  scarcity  of  sub 
jects  making  it  somewhat  hazardous  to  delay :  when  Hob- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  349 

son's  choice  is  placed  before  one,  deliberation  is  of  no 
great  use.  It  was  generally  understood  that  the  Rancocus 
was  to  bring  out  very  few  immigrants,  though  permission 
had  been  granted  to  Capt.  Saunders  to  take  letters  to  cer 
tain  friends  of  some  already  settled  in  the  colony,  with  the 
understanding  that  those  friends  were  to  be  received, 
should  they  determine  to  come.  That  point,  however,  was 
soon  to  be  decided,  for  just  a  year  and  one  week  after  the 
Rancocus  had  sailed  from  Betto's  group,  the  news  reached 
the  Reef  that  the  good  ship  was  coming  into  the  northern 
roads,  and  preparing  to  anchor.  The  governor  imme 
diately  went  on  board  the  Anne,  taking  Betts  with  him, 
and  made  sail  for  the  point  in  question,  with  a  view  to 
bring  the  vessel  through  the  passage  to  the  Reef.  The  go 
vernor  and  Betts  were  the  only  two  who,  as  it  was  believed, 
could  carry  so  large  a  vessel  through;  though  later  sound 
ings  showed  it  was  only  necessary  to  keep  clear  of  the 
points  and  the  shores,  in  order  to  bring  in  a  craft  of  any 
draught  of  water. 

When  the  Anne  ran  out  into  the  roads,  there  she  found 
the  Rancocus  at  anchor,  sure  enough.  On  nearing  her, 
Capt.  Saunders  appeared  on  her  poop,  and  in  answer  to  a 
hail,  gave  the  welcome  answer  of  "  all  well."  Those  com 
prehensive  words  removed  a  great  deal  of  anxiety  from  the 
mind  of  the  governor ;  absence  being,  in  one  sense,  the 
parent  of  uncertainty,  and  uncertainty  of  uneasiness. 
Everything  about  the  ship,  however,  looked  well,  and  to 
the  surprise  of  those  in  the  Anne,  many  heads  belonging 
to  others  beside  the  crew  were  to  be  seen  above  the  rail. 
A  sail  was  in  sight,  moreover,  standing  in,  and  this  vessel 
Capt.  Saunders  stated  was  the  brig  Henlopen,  purchased 
on  government  account,  and  loaded  with  stock,  and  other 
property  for  the  colony. 

On  going  on  board  the  Rancocus  it  was  ascertained 
that,  in  all,  one  hundred  and  eleven  new  immigrants  had 
been  brought  out !  The  circle  of  the  affections  had  been 
set  at  work,  and  one  friend  had  induced  another  to  enter 
into  the  adventure,  until  it  was  found  that  less  than  the 
number  mentioned  could  not  be  gotten  rid  of.  That  which 
could  not  be  cured  was  to  be  endured,  and  the  governor's 
dissatisfaction  was  a  good  deal  appeased  when  he  learned 
30 


350  TTIE   CRATER; 

that  the  new-comers  were  of  excellent  materials ;  being, 
without  exception,  young,  healthful,  moral,  and  all  pos 
sessed  of  more  or  less  substance,  in  the  way  of  worldly 
goods.  This  accession  to  the  colony  brought  its  popula 
tion  up  to  rather  more  than  five  hundred  souls,  of  which 
number,  however,  near  a  hundred  and  fifty  were  children, 
or,  under  the  age  of  fourteen  years. 

Glad  enough  were  the  new-comers  to  land  at  a  little  set 
tlement  which  had  been  made  on  the  island  which  lay 
abreast  of  the  roads,  and  where,  indeed,  there  was  a  very 
convenient  harbour,  did  vessels  choose  to  use  it.  The 
roads,  however,  had  excellent  anchorage,  and  were  per 
fectly  protected  against  the  prevailing  winds  of  that  region. 
Only  once,  indeed,  since  the  place  was  inhabited,  had  the 
wind  been  known  to  blow  on  shore  at  that  point ;  and  then 
only  during  a  brief  squall.  In  general,  the  place  was 
every  way  favourable  for  the  arrival  and  departure  of  ship 
ping,  the  trades  making  a  leading  breeze  both  in  going 
and  coming — as,  indeed,  they  did  all  the  way  to  and  from 
the  Reef.  A  long-headed  emigrant,  of  the  name  of 
Dunks,  had  foreseen  the  probable,  future,  importance  of 
this  outer  harbour,  and  had  made  such  an  arrangement 
with  the  council,  as  to  obtain  leave  for  himself  and  three 
or  four  of  his  connections  to  exchange  the  land  they  had 
drawn,  against  an  equal  quantity  in  this  part  of  the  group. 
The  arrangement  was  made,  and  this  little,  out-lying  colo 
ny  had  now  been  established  an  entire  season.  As  the 
spot  was  a  good  deal  exposed  to  an  invasion,  a  stone  dwell 
ing  had  been  erected,  that  was  capable  of  accommodating 
the  whole  party,  and  pickets  were  placed  around  it  in 
such  a  way  as  to  prove  an  ample  defence  against  any  at 
tempt  to  carry  the  work  by  assault.  The  governor  had 
lent  them  a  field-piece,  and  it  was  thought  the  whole  dis 
position  was  favourable  to  the  security  of  the  colony, 
since  no  less  than  eleven  combatants  could  be  mustered 
here  to  repel  invasion. 

The  immigrants,  as  usual,  found  everything  charming, 
when  their  feet  touched  terra  firma.  The  crops  didlook  well, 
and  the  island  being  covered  with  mud,  the  sand  had  done 
wonders  for  the  vegetation.  It  is  true  that  trees  were 
wanting,  though  the  pickets,  or  palisades,  being  of  willow. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  351 

had  all  sprouted,  and  promised  soon  to  enclose  the  dwell 
ing  in  a  grove.  Some  fifty  acres  had  been  tilled,  more  or 
less  thoroughly,  and  timothy  was  already  growing  that  was 
breast-high.  Clover  looked  well,  too,  as  did  everything 
else ;  the  guano  having  lost  none  of  its  virtue  since  the 
late  arrivals. 

The  governor  sent  back  the  Anne,  with  instructions  to 
prepare  room  for  the  immigrants  in  the  government  dwell 
ing,  which,  luckily,  was  large  enough  to  receive  them  all. 
He  waited  with  the  Rancocus,  however,  for  the  Henlopen 
to  come  in  and  anchor.  He  then  went  on  board  this  brig, 
and  took  a  look  at  the  stock.  Saunders,  a  discreet,  sen 
sible  man,  so  well  understood  the  importance  of  adding  to 
the  physical  force  of  the  colony,  in  the  way  of  brutes,  that 
he  had  even  strained  the  point  to  bring  as  many  mares  and 
cows  as  he  could  stow.  He  had  put  on  board  twenty-five 
of  the  last,  and  twenty  of  the  first;  all  purchased  at  Valpa 
raiso.  The  weather  had  been  so  mild,  that  no  injury  had 
happened  to  the  beasts,  but  the  length  of  the  passage  had 
so  far  exhausted  the  supplies  that  not  a  mouthful  of  food 
had  the  poor  animals  tasted  for  the  twenty-four  hours  before 
they  got  in.  The  water,  too,  was  scarce,  and  anything  but 
sweet.  For  a  month  everything  had  been  on  short  allow 
ance,  and  the  suffering  creatures  must  have  been  enchanted 
to  smell  the  land.  Smell  it  they  certainly  did  ;  for  such  a 
lowing,  and  neighing,  and  fretting  did  they  keep  up,  when 
the  governor  got  alongside  of  the  brig,  that  he  could  noi 
endure  the  sight  of  their  misery,  but  determined  at  once  to 
relieve  it. 

The  brig  was  anchored  within  two  hundred  yards  of  a 
fine  sandy  beach,  on  which  there  were  several  runs  of  deli 
cious  water,  and  which  communicated  directly  with  a 
meadow  of  grass,  as  high  as  a  man's  breast.  A  bargain 
was  soon  made  with  Dunks ;  and  the  two  crews,  that  of  the 
Rancocus,  as  well  as  that  of  the  brig,  were  set  to  work 
without  delay  to  hoist  out  every  creature  having  a  hoof, 
that  was  on  board  the  Henlopen.  As  slings  were  all  ready, 
little  delay  was  necessary,  but  a  mare  soon  rose  through 
the  hatchway,  was  swung  over  the  vessel's  side,  and  was 
lowered  into  the  water.  A  very  simple  contrivance  re 
leased  the  creature  from  the  slings,  and  off  it  swam,  making 
the  best  of  its  way  towards  the  land.  In  three  minutes  the 


352  THE   CRATER; 

poor  thing  was  on  the  beach,  though  actually  staggering 
from  weakness,  and  from  long  use  to  the  motion  of  the 
vessel.  The  water  was  its  first  aim.  Dunks  was  there, 
however,  to  prevent  it  from  drinking  too  much,  when  it 
made  its  way  up  to  the  grass,  which  it  began  to  eat  rave 
nously.  All  the  rest  went  through  the  same  process,  and 
in  a  couple  of  hours  the  poor  things  were  relieved  from 
their  misery,  and  the  brig,  which  smelled  like  a  stable,  was 
well  quit  of  them.  Brooms  and  water  were  set  to  work 
immediately,  but  it  was  a  month  before  the  Henlopen  los* 
the  peculiar  odour  of  the  cattle. 

Nor  were  the  human  beings  much  less  rejoiced  to  ge 
ashore  than  the  brutes.  Dunks  gave  them  all  a  hearty 
welcome,  and  though  he  had  little  fruit  to  offer,  he  had 
plenty  of  vegetables,  for  which  they  were  quite  as  thankful. 
Melons,  however,  he  could  and  did  give  them,  and  the 
human  part  of  the  cargo  had  an  ample  feast  on  a  sort  of 
food  to  which  they  had  now  so  long  been  strangers.  The 
horses  and  cows  were  left  on  Dunks's  Island,  where  they 
stayed  until  word  was  sent  to  the  governor  that  they  had 
eaten  down  all  his  grass,  and  would  soon  be  on  allowance 
again,  unless  taken  away.  Means,  however,  were  soon 
found  to  relieve  him  of  the  stock,  though  his  meadows,  or 
pastures  rather,  having  been  seldom  cut  in  that  climate, 
were  much  improved  by  the  visit  paid  them.  As  for  the 
animals,  they  were  parcelled  out  among  the  different  farms, 
thus  giving  a  little  milk,  and  a  little  additional  force  to 
each  neighbourhood.  Fowls  and  pigs  had  been  distributed 
some  time  previously,  so  that  not  a  man  in  the  group  was 
without  his  breeding  sow,  and  his  brood  of  young  chickens. 
These  were  species  of  stock  that  increased  so  rapidly,  that 
a  little  care  alone  was  wanting  to  make  eggs  and  pork 
plenty.  Corn,  or  maize,  grew  just  for  the  planting ;  though 
it  was  all  the  better,  certainly,  for  a  little  care. 

After  sufficient  time  had  been  allowed  to  make  the  ne 
cessary  preparations,  the  vessels  sailed  with  the  immigrants 
for  the  Reef.  There  was  many  a  glad  meeting  between 
friends  and  relatives.  Those  who  had  just  arrived  had  a 
great  deal  to  tell  those  who  had  preceded  then  by  eighteen 
months,  and  those  who  now  considered  themselves  old  set 
tlers,  entertained  the  new  ones  with  the  wonders  of  their 
novel  situations. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  353 


CHAPTEE  XXIV. 

«  Welter  upon  the  waters,  mighty  one — 
And  stretch  thee  in  the  ocean's  trough  of  brine  ; 
Turn  thy  wet  scales  up  to  the  wind  and  sun, 
And  toss  the  billow  from  thy  flashing  fin ; 
Heave  thy  deep  breathing  to  the  ocean's  din, 
And  bound  upon  its  ridges  in  thy  pride, 
Or  dive  down  to  its  lowest  depths,  and  in 
The  caverns  where  its  unknown  monsters  hide 
Measure  thy  length  beneath  the  gulf-stream's  tide." 

BKAINARU'S  Sea-Serpent. 

THE  colony  had  now  reached  a  point  when  its  policy 
must  have  an  eye  to  its  future  destinies.  If  it  were  in 
tended  to  push  it,  like  a  new  settlement,  a  very  different 
course  ought  to  be  pursued  from  the  one  hitherto  adopted. 
But  the  governor  and  council  entertained  more  moderate 
views.  They  understood  their  real  position  better.  It  was 
true  that  the  Peak,  in  one  sense,  or  in  that  which  related 
to  soil  and  products,  was  now  in  a  condition  to  receive 
immigrants  as  fast  as  they  could  come ;  but  the  Peak  had  its 
limits,  and  it  could  hold  but  a  very  circumscribed  number. 
As  to  the  group,  land  had  to  be  formed  for  the  reception 
of  the  husbandman,  little  more  than  the  elements  of  soil 
existing  over  so  much  of  its  surface.  Then,  in  the  way  of 
trade,  there  could  riot  be  any  very  great  inducement  for 
adventurers  to  come,  since  the  sandal-wood  was  the  only 
article  possessed  which  would  command  a  price  in  a  fo 
reign  market.  This  sandal-wood,  moreover,  did  not  be 
long  to  the  colony,  but  to  a  people  who  might,  at  any 
moment,  become  hostile,  and  who  already  began  to  com 
plain  that  the  article  was  getting  to  be  very  scarce.  Un 
der  all  the  circumstance?  therefore,  it  was  not  deemed 
desirable  to  add  to  the  population  of  the  place  faster  than 
would  now  be  done  by  natural  means. 

The  cargoes  of  the  two  vessels  just  arrived  were  divided 
between  the  state  and  the  governor,  by  a  very  just  process. 
30* 


354  THE   CUATER; 

The  governor  had  one-half  the  proceeds  for  his  own  pri 
vate  use,  as  owner  of  the  Rancocus,  without  which  vessel 
nothing  could  have  been  done;  while  the  state  received 
the  other  moiety,  in  virtue  of  the  labour  of  its  citizens  as 
well  as  in  that  ot'  its  right  to  impose  duties  on  imports  and 
exports.  Of  the  portion  which  went  to  the  state,  certain 
parts  were  equally  divided  between  the  colonists,  for  imme 
diate  use,  while  other  parts  of  the  cargo  were  placed  in 
store,  and  held  as  a  stock,  to  be  drawn  upon  as  occasion 
might  arise. 

The  voyage,  like  most  adventures  in  sandal-wood,  teas, 
&c.,  in  that  day,  had  been  exceedingly  advantageous,  and 
produced  a  most  beneficent  influence  on  the  fortunes  and 
comforts  of  the  settlement.  A  well-selected  cargo  of  the 
coarse,  low-priced  articles  most  needed  in  such  a  colony, 
could  easily  have  been  purchased  with  far  less  than  the  pro 
ceeds  of  the  cargo  of  tea  that  had  been  obtained  at  Can 
ton,  in  exchange  for  the  sandal-wood  carried  out;  and 
Saunders,  accordingly,  had  filled  the  holds  of  both  vessels 
with  such  articles,  besides  bringing  home  with  him  a  con 
siderable  amount  in  specie,  half  of  which  went  into  the 
public  coffers,  and  half  into  the  private  purse  of  governor 
Woolston.  Money  had  been  in  circulation  in  the  colony 
for  the  last  twelve  months;  though  a  good  deal  of  caution 
was  used  in  suffering  it  to  pass  from  hand  to  hand.  The 
disposition  was  to  hoard ;  but  this  fresh  arrival  of  specie 
gave  a  certain  degree  of  confidence,  and  the  silver  circu 
lated  a  great  deal  more  freely  after  it  was  known  that  so 
considerable  an  amount  had  been  brought  in. 

It  would  scarcely  be  in  our  power  to  enumerate  the 
articles  that  were  received  by  these  arrivals;  they  in 
cluded  everything  in  common  use  among  civilized  men, 
from  a  grind-stone  to  a  cart.  Groceries,  too,  had  been 
brought  in  reasonable  quantities,  including  teas,  sugars, 
&,c. ;  though  these  articles  were  not  so  much  considered 
necessaries  in  America  fifty  years  ago  as  they  are  to-day. 
The  groceries  of  the  state  as  well  as  many  other  articles, 
were  put  into  the  hands  of  the  merchants,  who  either  pur 
chased  them  out  and  out,  to  dispose  of  at  retail,  or  who 
took  them  on  commission  with  the  same  object.  From 
this  time,  therefore,  regular  shops  existed,  there  being 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  355 

three  on  the  Reef  and  one  on  the  Peak,  where  nearly 
everything  in  use  could  be  bought,  and  that,  too,  at  prices 
that  were  far  from  being  exorbitant.  The  absence  of  im 
port  duties  had  a  great  influence  on  the  cost  of  things,  the 
state  getting  its  receipts  in  kind,  directly  through  the 
labour  of  its  citizens,  instead  of  looking  to  a  custom 
house  in  quest  of  its  share  for  the  general  prosperity. 

At  that  time  very  little  was  written  about  the  great  fal 
lacy  of  the  present  day,  Free  Trade ;  which  is  an  illusion 
about  which  men  now  talk,  and  dispute,  and  almost  fight, 
while  no  living  mortal  can  tell  what  it  really  is.  It  is  wise 
for  us  in  America,  who  never  had  anything  but  free  trade, 
according  to  modern  doctrines,  to  look  a  little  closely  into 
the  sophisms  that  are  getting  to  be  so  much  in  vogue; 
and  which,  whenever  they  come  from  our  illustrious  ances 
tors  in  Great  Britain,  have  some  such  effect  on  the  ima 
ginations  of  a  portion  of  our  people,  as  purling  rills  and 
wooded  cascades  are  known  to  possess  over  those  of  cer 
tain  young  ladies  of  fifteen. 

Free  trade,  in  its  true  signification,  or  in  the  only  signi 
fication  which  is  not  a  fallacy,  can  only  mean  a  commerce 
that  is  totally  unfettered  by  duties,  restrictions,  prohibi 
tions,  and  charges  of  all  sorts.  Except  among  savages, 
the  world  never  yet  saw  such  a  state  of  things,  and  proba 
bly  never  will.  Even  free  trade  ports  have  exactions  that, 
in  a  degree,  counteract  their  pretended  principle  of  liberty; 
and  no  free  port  exists,  that  is  anything  more,  in  a  strict 
interpretation  of  its  uses,  than  a  sort  of  bonded  ware 
house.  So  long  as  your  goods  remain  there,  on  deposit 
and  unappropriated,  they  are  not  taxed ;  but  the  instant 
they  are  taken  to  the  consumer,  the  customary  impositions 
must  be  paid. 

Freer  trade — that  is,  a  trade  which  is  less  encumbered 
than  some  admitted  state  of  things  which  previously  ex 
isted —  is  easily  enough  comprehended;  but,  instead  of 
conveying  to  the  rnind  any  general  theory,  it  merely  shows 
that  a  lack  of  wisdom  may  have  prevailed  in  the  manage 
ment  of  some  particular  interest ;  which  lack  of  wisdom  is 
now  being  tardily  repaired.  Prohibitions,  whether  direct, 
or  in  the  form  of  impositions  that  the  trade  will  not  bear, 
may  be  removed  without  leaving  trade  free.  This  or  that 


356  THE  CRATER; 

article  may  be  thrown  open  to  the  general  competition, 
without  import  duty  or  tax  of  any  sort,  and  yet  the  great 
bulk  of  the  commerce  of  a  country  be  so  fettered  as  to  put 
an  effectual  check  upon  anything  like  liberal  intercourse. 
Suppose,  for  instance,  that  Virginia  were  an  independent 
country.  Its  exports  would  be  tobacco,  flour,  and  corn ; 
the  tobacco  crop  probably  more  than  equalling  in  value 
those  portions  of  the  other  crops  which  are  sent  out  of  the 
country.  England  is  suffering  for  food,  and  she  takes  off 
everything  like  imposts  on  the  eatables,  while  she  taxes  to 
bacco  to  the  amount  of  many  hundred  per  cent.  Can  that 
be  called  free  trade  ? 

There  is  another  point  of  view  in  which  we  could  wish 
to  protest  against  the  shouts  and  fallacies  of  the  hour. 
Trade,  perhaps  the  most,  corrupt  arid  corrupting  influence 
of  life  —  or,  if  second  to  anything  in  evil,  second  only  to 
politics  —  is  proclaimed  to  be  the  great  means  of  human 
izing,  enlightening,  liberalizing,  and  improving  the  human 
race !  Now,  against  this  monstrous  mistake  in  morals,  we 
would  fain  raise  our  feeble  voices  in  sober  remonstrance. 
That  the  intercourse  which  is  a  consequence  of  commerce 
may,  in  certain  ways,  liberalize  a  man's  views,  we  are 
willing  to  admit ;  though,  at  the  same  time,  we  shall  insist 
that  there  are  better  modes  of  attaining  the  same  ends. 
But  it  strikes  us  as  profane  to  ascribe  to  this  frail  and  mer 
cenary  influence  a  power  which  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe  the  Almighty  has  bestowed  on  the  Christian  church, 
and  on  that  alone ;  a  church  which  is  opposed  to  most  of 
the  practices  of  trade,  which  rebukes  them  in  nearly  every 
line  of  its  precepts,  and  which,  carried  out  in  its  purity, 
can  alone  give  the  world  that  liberty  and  happiness  which 
a  grasping  spirit  of  cupidity  is  so  ready  to  impute  to  the 
desire  to  accumulate  gold  ! 

Fortunately,  there  was  little  occasion  to  dispute  about 
the  theories  of  commerce  at  the  Reef.  The  little  trade 
that  did  exist  was  truly  unfettered ;  but  no  one  supposed 
that  any  man  was  nearer  to  God  on  that  account,  except 
as  he  was  farther  removed  from  temptations  to  do  wrong. 
Still,  the  governing  principle  was  sound ;  not  by  canting 
about  the  beneficent  and  holy  influences  of  commerce,  but 
by  leaving  to  each  man  his  individuality,  or  restraining  it 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  357 

only  on  those  points  which  the  public  good  demanded. 
Instead  of  monopolizing  the  trade  of  the  colony,  which  his 
superior  wealth  and  official  power  would  have  rendered 
very  easy,  governor  Woolston  acted  in  the  most  liberal 
spirit  to  all  around  him.  With  the  exception  of  the  Anne, 
which  was  built  by  the  colony,  the  council  had  decided,  in 
some  measure  contrary  to  his  wishes,  though  in  strict  ac 
cordance  with  what  was  right,  that  all  the  vessels  were  the 
private  property  of  Mark.  After  this  decision,  the  governor 
formally  conveyed  the  Mermaid  and  the  Abraham  to  the 
state ;  the  former  to  be  retained  principally  as  a  cruiser  and 
a  packet,  while  the  last  was  in  daily  use  as  a  means  of  con 
veying  articles  and  passengers,  from  one  island  to  the  other. 
The  Neshamony  was  presented,  out  and  out,  to  Betts,  who 
turned  many  a  penny  with  her,  by  keeping  her  running 
through  the  different  passages,  with  freight,  &-c. ;  going 
from  plantation  to  plantation,  as  these  good  people  were  in 
the  practice  of  calling  their  farms.  Indeed,  Bob  did  little 
else,  until  the  governor,  seeing  his  propensity  to  stick  by 
the  water,  and  ascertaining  that  the  intercourse  would 
justify  such  an  investment,  determined  to  build  him  a 
sloop,  in  order  that  he  might  use  her  as  a  sort  of  packet 
and  market-boat,  united.  A  vessel  of  about  forty-five  tons 
was  laid  down  accordingly,  and  put  into  the  water  at  the 
end  of  six  months,  that  was  just  the  sort  of  craft  suited  to 
Bob's  wishes  and  wants.  In  the  mean  time,  the  honest 
fellow  had  resigned  his  seat  in  the  council,  feeling  that  he 
was  out  of  his  place  in  such  a  body,  among  men  of  more 
or  less  education,  and  of  habits  so  much  superior  and 
more  refined  than  his  own.  Mark  did  not  oppose  this  step 
in  his  friend,  but  rather  encouraged  it;  being  persuaded 
nothing  was  gained  by  forcing  upon  a  man  duties  he  was 
hardly  fitted  to  discharge.  Self-made  men,  he  well  knew, 
were  sometimes  very  useful ;  but  he  also  knew  that  they 
must  be  first  made. 

The  name  of  this  new  sloop  was  the  Martha,  being  thus 
called  in  compliment  to  her  owner's  sober-minded,  indus 
trious  and  careful  wife.  She  (the  sloop,  and  not  Mrs. 
Betts)  was  nearly  all  cabin,  having  lockers  forward  and 
aft,  and  was  fitted  with  benches  in  her  wings,  steamboat 
fashion.  Her  canvas  was  of  light  duck,  there  being  very 


358  THE   CRATER; 

little  heavy  weather  in  that  climate;  so  that  assisted  by  a 
boy  and  a  Kannaka,  honest  Bob  could  do  anything  he 
wished  with  his  craft.  He  often  went  to  the  Peak  and 
Rancocus  Island  in  her,  always  doing  something  useful ; 
and  he  even  made  several  trips  in  her,  within  the  first  few 
months  he  had  her  running,  as  far  as  Betto's  group.  On 
these  last  voyages,  he  carried  over  Kannakas  as  passengers, 
as  well  as  various  small  articles,  such  as  fish-hooks,  old 
iron,  hatchets  even,  and  now  and  then  a  little  tobacco. 
These  he  exchanged  for  cocoa-nuts,  which  were  yet  scarce 
in  the  colony,  on  account  of  the  number  of  mouths  to 
consume  them ;  baskets,  Indian  cloth,  paddles  which  the 
islanders  made  very  beautifully  and  with  a  great  deal  of 
care;  bread-fruit,  and  other  plants  that  abounded  more  at 
Betto's  group  than  at  the  Reef,  or  even  on  the  Peak. 

But  the  greatest  voyage  Betts  made  that  season  was 
when  he  took  a  freight  of  melons.  This  was  a  fruit  which 
now  abounded  in  the  colony;  so  much  so  as  to  be  fed  even 
to  the  hogs,  while  the  natives  knew  nothing  of  it  beyond 
the  art  of  eating  it.  They  were  extraordinarily  fond  of 
melons,  and  Bob  actually  filled  the  cabin  of  the  Martha 
with  articles  obtained  in  exchange  for  his  cargo.  Among 
other  things  obtained  on  this  occasion,  was  a  sufficiency 
of  sandal-wood  to  purchase  for  the  owner  of  the  sloop  as 
many  groceries  as  he  could  consume  in  his  family  for  twelve 
months;  though  groceries  were  high,  as  may  well  be  sup 
posed,  in  a  place  like  the  Reef.  Betts  always  admitted 
that  the  first  great  turn  in  his  fortune  was  the  money  made 
on  this  voyage,  in  which  he  embarked  without  the  least 
apprehension  of  Waally,  and  his  never-ceasing  wiles  and 
intrigues.  Indeed,  most  of  his  sales  were  made  to  that 
subtle  and  active  chief,  who  dealt  very  fairly  by  him. 

All  this  time  the  Rancocus  was  laid  up  for  want  of 
something  to  freight  her  with.  At  one  time  the  governor 
thought  of  sending  her  to  pick  up  a  cargo  where  she  could; 
but  a  suggestion  by  a  seaman  of  the  name  of  Walker  set 
him  on  a  different  track,  and  put  on  foot  an  adventure 
which  soon  attracted  the  attention  of  most  of  the  sea-faring 
portion  of  the  community. 

It  had  been  observed  by  the  crew  of  the  Rancocus,  not 
only  in  her  original  run  through  those  seas,  but  in  her  two 


OR,    VULCAN'S   PEAK.      .  359 

subsequent  passages  from  America,  that  the  spermaceti 
whale  abounded  in  all  that  part  of  the  ocean  which  lay  to 
windward  of  the  group.  Now  Walker  had  once  been 
second  officer  of  a  Nantucket  craft,  and  was  regularly 
brought  up  to  the  business  of  taking  whales.  Among  the 
colonists  were  half  a  dozen  others  who  had  done  more  or 
less  at  the  same  business ;  and,  at  the  suggestion  of  Walker, 
who  had  gone  out  in  the  Rancocus  as  her  first  officer, 
captain  Saunders  laid  in  a  provision  of  such  articles  aa 
were  necessary  to  set  up  the  business.  These  consisted 
of  cordage,  harpoons,  spades,  lances,  and  casks.  Then 
no  small  part  of  the  lower  hold  of  the  Henlopen  was  stowed 
with  shook  casks;  iron  for  hoops,  &.C.,  being  also  pro 
vided. 

As  the  sandal-wood  was  now  obtained  in  only  small 
quantities,  all  idea  of  sending  the  ship  to  Canton  again, 
that  year,  was  necessarily  abandoned.  At  first  this  seemed 
to  be  a  great  loss ;  but  when  the  governor  came  to  reflect 
coolly  on  the  subject,  not  only  he,  but  the  council  gener 
ally,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  Providence  was  dealing 
more  mercifully  with  them,  by  turning  the  people  into  this 
new  channel  of  commerce,  than  to  leave  them  to  pursue 
their  original  track.  Sandal-wood  had  a  purely  adventitious 
value,  though  it  brought,  particularly  in  that  age,  a  most 
enormous  profit;  one  so  large,  indeed,  as  to  have  a  direct 
and  quick  tendency  to  demoralize  those  embarked  in  the 
trade.  The  whaling  business,  on  the  other  hand,  while  it 
made  large  returns,  demanded  industry,  courage,  perse 
verance,  and  a  fair  amount  of  capital.  Of  vessels,  the 
colonists  had  all  they  wanted  ;  the  forethought  of  Saunders 
and  the  suggestions  of  Walker  furnished  the  particular 
means;  and  of  provisions  there  was  now  a  superabundance 
in  the  group. 

It  was  exceedingly  fortunate  that  such  an  occupation 
offered  to  interest  and  keep  alive  the  spirit  of  the  colonists. 
Man  must  have  something  to  do;  some  main  object  to  live 
for ;  or  he  is  apt  to  degenerate  in  his  ambition,  and  to  fall 
off  in  his  progress.  No  sooner  was  it  announced  that 
whales  were  to  be  taken,  however,  than  even  the  women 
became  alive  to  the  results  of  the  enterprise.  This  feeling 
was  kept  up  by  the  governor's  letting  it  be  officially  known 


360  THE   CRATER; 

that  each  colonist  should  have  one  share,  or  "  lay,"  as  it 
was  termed,  in  the  expected  cargo;  which  share,  or  "  lay,'* 
was  to  be  paid  for  in  provisions.  Those  actually  engaged 
in  the  business  had  as  many  "  lays"  as  it  was  thought  they 
could  earn ;  the  colony  in  its  collected  capacity  had  a  cer 
tain  number  more,  in  return  for  articles  received  from  the 
public  stores;  and  the  governor,  as  owner  of  the  vessels 
employed,  received  one-fifth  of  the  whole  cargo,  or  cargoes. 
This  last  was  a  very  small  return  for  the  amount  of  capital 
employed  ;  and  it  was  so  understood  by  those  who  reaped 
the  advantages  of  the  owner's  liberality. 

The  Rancocus  was  not  fitted  out  as  a  whaler,  but  was 
reserved  as  a  ware-house  to  receive  the  oil,  to  store  it  until 
a  cargo  was  collected,  and  then  was  to  be  used  as  a  means 
to  convey  it  to  America.  For  this  purpose  she  was  stripped, 
had  her  rigging  thoroughly  overhauled,  was  cleaned  out 
and  smoked  for  rats,  and  otherwise  was  prepared  for  ser 
vice.  While  in  this  state,  she  lay  alongside  of  the  natural 
quay,  near  and  opposite  to  some  extensive  sheds  which  had 
been  erected,  as  a  protection  against  the  heats  of  the  cli 
mate. 

The  Henlopen,  a  compact  clump  of  a  brig,  that  was 
roomy  on  deck,  and  had  stout  masts  and  good  rigging,  was 
fitted  out  for  the  whaler ;  though  the  Anne  was  sent  to 
cruise  in  company.  Five  whale-boats,  with  the  necessary 
crews,  were  employed  ;  two  remaining  with  the  Anne,  and 
three  in  the  brig.  The  Karmakas  were  found  to  be  inde 
fatigable  at  the  oar,  and  a  good  number  of  them  were  used 
on  this  occasion.  About  twenty  of  the  largest  boys  be 
longing  to  the  colony  were  also  sent  out,  in  order  to  accus 
tom  them  to  the  sea.  These  boys  were  between  the  ages 
of  eight  and  sixteen,  and  were  made  useful  in  a  variety  of 
ways. 

Great  was  the  interest  awakened  in  the  colony  when  the 
Henlopen  and  the  Anne  sailed  on  this  adventure.  Many 
of  the  women,  the  wives,  daughters,  sisters,  or  sweethearts 
of  the  whalers,  would  gladly  have  gone  along;  and  so  in 
tense  did  the  feeling  become,  that  the  governor  determined 
to  make  a  festival  of  the  occasion,  and  to  offer  to  take  out 
himself,  in  the  Mermaid,  as  many  of  both  sexes  as  might 
choose  to  make  a  trip  of  a  few  days  at  sea,  and  be  wit- 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  361 

nesses  of  the  success  of  their  friends  in  this  new  under 
taking.  Betts  also  took  a  party  in  the  Martha.  The 
Abraham,  too,  was  in  company ;  while  the  Neshamony  was 
sent  to  leeward,  to  keep  a  look-out  in  that  quarter,  lest  the 
natives  should  take  it  into  their  heads  to  visit  the  group, 
while  so  many  of  its  fighting-men,  fully  a  hundred  altoge 
ther,  were  absent.  It  is  true,  those  who  stayed  at  home 
were  fully  able  to  beat  off  Waally  and  his  followers ;  but 
the  governor  thought  it  prudent  to  have  a  look-out.  Such 
was  the  difference  produced  by  habit.  When  the  whole 
force  of  the  colony  consisted  of  less  than  twenty  men,  it 
was  thought  sufficient  to  protect  itself,  could  it  be  brought 
to  act  together ;  whereas,  now,  when  ten  times  twenty  were 
left  at  home,  unusual  caution  was  deemed  necessary,  be 
cause  the  colony  was  weakened  by  this  expedition  of  so 
many  of  its  members.  But  everything  is  comparative  with 
man. 

When  all  was  ready,  the  whaling  expedition  sailed;  the 
governor  leading  on  board  the  Mermaid,  which  had  no  less 
than  forty  females  in  her — Bridget  and  Anne  being  among 
them.  The  vessels  went  out  by  the  southern  channel, 
passing  through  the  strait  at  the  bridge  in  order  to  do  so. 
This  course  was  taken,  as  it  would  be  easier  to  turn  to 
windward  in  the  open  water  between  the  south  cape  and 
the  Peak,  than  to  do  it  in  the  narrow  passages  between  the 
islands  of  the  group.  The  Mermaid  led  off  handsomely, 
sparing  the  Henlopen  her  courses  and  royals.  Even  the 
Abraham  could  spare  the  last  vessel  her  foresail,  the  new 
purchase  turning  out  to  be  anything  but  a  traveller.  The 
women  wondered  how  so  slow  a  vessel  could  ever  catch  a 
whale ! 

The  direction  steered  by  the  fleet  carried  it  close  under 
the  weather  side  of  the  Peak,  the  summit  of  which  was 
crowded  by  the  population,  to  see  so  unusual  and  pleasing 
a  sight.  The  Martha  led,  carrying  rather  more  sail,  in 
proportion  to  her  size,  than  the  Mermaid.  It  happened,  by 
one  of  those  vagaries  of  fortune  which  so  often  thwart  the 
best  calculations,  that  a  spout  was  seen  to  windward  of  the 
cliffs,  at  a  moment  when  the  sloop  was  about  a  league 
nearer  to  it  than  any  other  vessel.  Now,  every  vessel  in 
the  fleet  had  its  whale-boat  and  whale-boat's  crew ;  though 


362  THE   CRATER; 

the  men  of  all  but  those  who  belonged  to  the  Henlopen 
were  altogether  inexperienced.  It  is  true,  they  had  learned 
the  theory  of  the  art  of  taking  a  whale;  but  they  were 
utterly  wanting  in  the  practice.  Betts  was  not  the  man 
to  have  the  game  in  view,  however,  and  not  make  an  effort 
to  overcome  it.  His  boat  was  manned  in  an  instant,  and 
away  he  went,  with  Socrates  in  the  bows,  to  fasten  to  a 
huge  creature  that  was  rolling  on  the  water  in  a  species  of 
sluggish  enjoyment  of  its  instincts.  It  often  happens  that 
very  young  soldiers,  more  especially  when  an  esprit  de 
corps  has  been  awakened  in  them,  achieve  things  from 
which  older  troops  would  retire,  under  the  consciousness 
of  their  hazards.  So  did  it  prove  with  the  Martha's  boat's 
crew  on  this  occasion.  Betts  steered,  and  he  put  them 
directly  on  the  whale ;  Socrates,  who  looked  fairly  green 
under  the  influence  of  alarm  and  eagerness  to  attack,  both 
increased  by  the  total  novelty  of  his  situation,  making  his 
dart  of  the  harpoon  when  the  bows  of  the  fragile  craft  were 
literally  over  the  huge  body  of  the  animal.  All  the  energy 
of  the  negro  was  thrown  into  his  blow,  for  he  felt  as  if  it 
were  life  or  death  with  him ;  and  the  whale  spouted  blood 
immediately.  It  is  deemed  a  great  exploit  with  whalers, 
though  it  is  not  of  very  rare  occurrence,  to  inflict  a  death- 
wound  with  the  harpoon ;  that  implement  being  intended 
to  make  fast  with  to  the  fish,  which  is  subsequently  slain 
with  what  is  termed  a  lance.  But  Socrates  actually  killed 
the  first  whale  he  ever  struck,  with  the  harpoon ;  and  from 
that  moment  he  became  an  important  personage  in  the 
fisheries  of  those  seas.  That  blow  was  a  sort  of  Palo  Alto 
affair  to  him,  and  was  the  forerunner  of  many  similar  suc 
cesses.  Indeed,  it  soon  got  to  be  said,  that  "  with  Bob 
Betts  to  put  the  boat  on,  and  old  Soc  to  strike,  a  whale 
commonly  has  a  hard  time  on't."  It  is  true,  that  a  good 
many  boats  were  stove,  and  two  Kannakas  were  drowned, 
that  very  summer,  in  consequence  of  these  tactics;  but 
the  whales  were  killed,  and  Betts  and  the  black  escaped 
with  whole  skins. 

On  this,  the  first  occasion,  the  whale  made  the  water 
foam,  half-filled  the  boat,  and  would  have  dragged  it  under, 
but  for  the  vigour  of  the  negro's  arm,  and  the  home  cha 
racter  of  the  blow,  which  caused  the  fish  to  turn  up  and 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  363 

breathe  his  last,  before  he  had  time  to  run  any  great  dis 
tance.     The  governor  arrived  on  the  spot,  just  as  Bob 
had  got  a  hawser  to  the  whale  and  was  ready  to  fill  away 
for  the  South  Cape  channel  again.     The  vessels  passed 
each  other  cheering,  and  the   governor    admonished  his 
friend  not  to  carry  the  carcass  too  near  the  dwellings,  lest  it 
should  render  them  uninhabitable.     But  Betts  had  his  an 
chorage  already  in  his  eye,  and  away  he  went,  with  the 
wind  on  his  quarter,  towing  his  prize  at  the  rate  of  four  or 
five  knots.     It  may  be  said,  here,  that  the  Martha  went 
into  the  passage,  and  that  the  whale  was  floated  into  shallow 
water,  where  sinking  was  out  of  the  question,  and  Bob  and 
his  Kannakas,  about  twenty  in  number,  went  to  work  to  peel 
off  the  blubber  in  a  very  efficient,  though  not  in  a  very 
scientific,  or  artistical  manner.      They  got  the  creature 
stripped  of  its  jacket  of  fat  that  very  night,  and  next  morn 
ing  the  Martha  appeared  with  a  set  of  kettles,  in  which  the 
blubber  was  tried  out.     Casks  were  also  brought  in  the 
sloop,  and,  when  the  work  was  done,  it  was  found  that  that 
single  whale  yielded  one  hundred  and  eleven  barrels  of  oil, 
of  which  thirty-three  barrels  were  head-matter !    This  was 
a  capital"  commencement  for  the  new  trade,  and  Betts  con 
veyed  the  whole  of  his  prize  to  the  Reef,  where  the  oil  was 
started  into  the  ground-tier  of  the  Raricocus,  the  casks  of 
which  were  newly  repaired,  and  ready  stowed  to  receive  it. 
A  week  later,  as  the  governor  in  the  Mermaid,  cruising 
in  company  with  the  Henlopen  and  Abraham,  was  looking 
out  for  whales  about  a  hundred  miles  to  windward  of  the 
Peak,  having  met  with  no  success,  he  was  again  joined  by 
Betts  in  the  Martha.    Everything  was  reported  right  at  the 
Reef.     The  Neshamony  had  come  in  for  provisions  and 
gone  out  again,  and  the  Rancocus  would  stand  up  without 
watching,  with  her  hundred  and  eleven  barrels  of  oil  in 
her  lower  hold.      The  governor  expressed   his  sense  of 
Belts'  services,  and  reminding  him  of  his  old  faculty  of 
seeing  farther  and  truer  than  most  on  board,  he  asked  him 
to  go  up  into  the  brig's  cross-trees  and  take  a  look  for 
whales.      The  keen-eyed  fellow  had  not  been  aloft  ten 
minutes,  before  the  cry  of  "spouts — spouts!"  was  ringing 
through  the  vessel.     The  proper  signal  was  made  to  the 
Henlopen  and  Abraham,  when  everybody  made  sail  in  the 


364  THE   CRATER; 

necessary  direction.  By  sunset  a  great  number  of  whales 
were  fallen  in  with,  and  as  Capt.  Walker  gave  it  as  his 
opinion  they  were  feeding  in  that  place,  no  attempt  was 
made  on  them  until  morning.  The  next  day,  however, 
with  the  return  of  light,  six  boats  were  in  the  water,  and 
pulling  off  towards  the  game. 

On  this  occasion,  Walker  led  on,  as  became  his  rank 
and  experience.  In  less  than  an  hour  he  was  fast  to  a  very 
targe  whale,  a  brother  of  that  taken  by  Belts ;  and  the 
females  had  the  exciting  spectacle,  of  a  boat  towed  by  an 
enormous  fish,  at  a  rate  of  no  less  than  twenty  knots  in  an 
hour.  It  is  the  practice  among  whalers  for  the  vessel  to 
keep  working  to  windward,  while  the  game  is  taking,  in 
order  to  be  in  the  most  favourable  position  to  close  with 
the  boats,  after  the  whale  is  killed.  So  long,  however,  as 
the  creature  has  life  in  it,  it  would  be  folly  to  aim  at  any 
other  object  than  getting  to  windward,  for  the  fish  may  be 
here  at  one  moment,  and  a  league  off  in  a  few  minutes 
more.  Sometimes,  the  alarmed  animal  goes  fairly  out  of 
sight  of  the  vessel,  running  in  a  straight  line  some  fifteen 
or  twenty  miles,  when  the  alternatives  are  to  run  the 
chances  of  missing  the  ship  altogether,  or  to  cut  from  the 
whale.  By  doing  the  last  not  only  is  a  harpoon  lost,  but 
often  several  hundred  fathoms  of  line;  and  it  not  unfre- 
quently  happens  that  whales  are  killed  with  harpoons  in 
them,  left  by  former  assailants,  and  dragging  after  them  a 
hundred,  or  two,  fathoms  of  line. 

It  may  be  well,  here,  to  explain  to  the  uninitiated  reader, 
that  the  harpoon  is  a  barbed  spear,  with  a  small,  but  stout 
cord,  or  whale  line  fastened  to  it.  The  boat  approaches 
the  fish  bow  foremost,  but  is  made  sharp  at  both  ends  that 
it  may  "back  off,"  if  necessary;  the  whale  being  often 
dangerous  to  approach,  and  ordinarily  starting,  when  struck, 
in  a  way  to  render  his  immediate  neighbourhood  somewhat 
ticklish.  The  fish  usually  goes  down  when  harpooned, 
and  the  line  must  be  permitted  to  "  run-out,"  or  he  would 
drag  the  boat  after  him.  But  a  whale  must  breathe  as 
well  as  a  man,  and  the  faster  he  runs  the  sooner  he  must 
come  up  for  a  fresh  stock  of  air.  Now,  the  proper  use  of 
the  harpoon  and  the  line  is  merely  to  fasten  to  the  fish; 
though  it  does  sometimes  happen  that  the  creature  is  killed 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  365 

by  the  former.  As  soon  as  the  whale  re-appears  on  the 
surface,  and  becomes  stationary,  or  even  moderates  his 
speed  a  little,  the  men  begin  to  haul  in  line,  gradually 
closing  with  their  intended  victim.  It  often  happens  that 
the  whale  starts  afresh,  when  line  must  be  permitted  to  run 
out  anew ;  this  process  of  "  hauling  in"  and  "  letting  run" 
being  often  renewed  several  times  at  the  taking  of  a  single 
fish.  When  the  boat  can  be  hauled  near  enough,  the 
officer  at  its  head  darts  his  lance  into  the  whale,  aiming  at 
a  vital  part.  If  the  creature  "  spouts  blood,"  it  is  well ; 
but  if  not  hit  in  the  vitals,  away  it  goes,  and  the  whole  bu 
siness  of  "  letting  run,"  "  towing,"  arid  "  hauling  in"  has 
to  be  gone  over  again. 

On  the  present  occasion,  Walker's  harpooner,  or  boat- 
steerer,  as  he  is  called,  had  made  a  good  "  heave,"  and 
was  well  fast  to  his  fish.  The  animal  made  a  great  circuit, 
running  completely  round  the  Mermaid,  at  a  distance 
which  enabled  those  on  board  her  to  see  all  that  was  pass 
ing.  When  nearest  to  the  brig,  and  the  water  was  curling 
off  the  bow  of  the  boat  in  combs  two  feet  higher  than  her 
gunwale,  under  the  impulse  given  by  th%  frantic  career  of 
the  whale,  Bridget  pressed  closer  to  her  husband's  side, 
and,  for  the  first  time  in  her  life,  mentally  thanked  Heaven 
that  he  was  the  governor,  since  that  was  an  office  which 
did  not  require  him  to  go  forth  and  kill  whales.  At  that 
very  moment,  Mark  was  burning  with  the  desire  to  have 
a  hand  in  the  sport,  though  he  certainly  had  some  doubts 
whether  such  an  occupation  would  suitably  accord  with  the 
dignity  of  his  office. 

Walker  got  alongside  of  his  whale,  within  half  a  mile 
of  the  two  brigs,  and  to-leeward  of  both.  In  consequence 
of  this  favourable  circumstance,  the  Henlopen  soon  had  its 
prize  hooked  on,  and  her  people  at  work  stripping  off  the 
blubber.  This  is  done  by  hooking  the  lower  block  of  a 
powerful  purchase  in  a  portion  of  the  substance,  and  then 
cutting  a  strip  of  convenient  size,  and  heaving  on  the  fall 
at  the  windlass.  The  strip  is  cut  by  implements  called 
spades,  and  the  blubber  is  torn  from  the  carcass  by  the 
strain,  after  the  sides  of  the  "  blanket-piece,"  as  the  strip 
is  termed,  are  separated  from  the  other  portions  of  the  ani 
mal  by  the  cutting  process.  The  "  blanket-pieces"  are 
31* 


366  THE  CRATER; 

often  raised  as  high  as  the  lower  mast-heads,  or  as  far  an 
the  purchase  will  admit  of  its  being  carried,  when  a  trans 
verse  cut  is  made,  and  the  whole  of  the  fragment  is  lowered 
on  deck.  This  "  blanket-piece"  is  then  cut  into  pieces 
and  put  into  the  try-works,  a  large  boiler  erected  on  deck, 
in  order  to  be  "  tryed-out,"  when  the  oil  is  cooled,  and 
"  started"  below  into  casks.  In  this  instance,  the  oil  was 
taken  on  board  the  Abraham  as  fast  as  it  was  "  tryed-out" 
on  board  the  Henlopen,  the  weather  admitting  of  the 
transfer. 

But  that  single  whale  was  far  from  being  the  only  fruits 
of  Belts'  discovery.  The  honest  old  Delaware  seaman  took 
two  more  whales  himself,  Socrates  making  fast,  and  he 
killing  the  creatures.  The  boats  of  the  Henlopen  also  took 
two  more,  and  that  of  the  Abraham,  one.  Betts  in  the 
Martha,  and  the  governor  in  the  Mermaid  towed  four  of 
these  whales  into  the  southern  channel,  and  into  what  now 
got  the  name  of  the  Whaling  Bight.  This  was  the  spot 
where  Betts  had  tryed  out  the  first  fish  taken,  and  it  proved 
to  be  every  way  suitable  for  its  business.  The  Bight 
formed  a  perfectly^safe  harbour,  and  there  was  not  only  a 
sandy  shoal  on  which  the  whales  could  be  floated  and  kept 
from  sinking,  a  misfortune  that  sometimes  occurs,  but  it 
had  a  natural  quay  quite  near,  where  the  Rancocus,  her 
self,  could  lie.  There  was  fresh  water  in  abundance,  and 
an  island  of  sufficient  size  to  hold  the  largest  whaling  esta 
blishment  that  ever  existed.  This  island  was  incontinently 
named  Blubber  Island.  The  greatest  disadvantage  was  the 
total  absence  of  soil,  and  consequently  of, -ill  sorts  of  herb- 
;igr:;  but  its  surface  was  as  smooth  as  that  of  an  artificial 
quay,  admitting  of  the  rolling  of  casks  with  perfect  ease. 
The  governor  no  sooner  a-r.ertnined  the  facilities  of  the 
place,  which  was  far  enough  from  the  ordinary  passage  to 
and  from  the  Peak  to  remove  the  nuisances,  than  he  de 
termined  to  make  it  his  whaling  haven. 

The  Abraham  was  sent  across  to  Rancocus  Island  for  a 
load  of  lumber,  and  extensive  sheds  were  erected,  in  time 
to  receive  the  Henlopen,  when  she  came  in  with  a  thousand 
barrels  of  oil  on  board,  and  towing  in  three  whales  that  she 
had  actually  taken  in  the  passage  bctwcr-n  Tape  South  and 
the  Peak.  IJy  that  time,  the  Rancocus  had  been  moved, 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  367 

being  stiff  enough  to  be  brought,  from  the  Reef  to  Blubber 
Island,  under  some  of  her  lower  sails.  This  moving  of 
vessels  among  the  islands  of  the  group  was  a  very  easy 
matter,  so  long  as  they  were  not  to  be  carried  to  windward  ; 
arid,  a  further  acquaintance  with  the  channels,  had  let  the 
mariners  into  the  secret  of  turning  up,  against  the  trades 
and  within  the  islands,  by  keeping  in  such  reaches  as 
enabled  them  to  go  as  near  the  wind  as  was  necessary, 
while  they  were  not  compelled  to  go  nearer  than  a  craft 
could  lie. 

Such  was  the  commencement  of  a  trade  that  was  des 
tined  to  be  of  the  last  importance  to  our  colonists.  The. 
oil  that  was  brought  in,  from  this  first  cruise,  a  cruise  that 
lasted  less  than  two  months,  and  including  that  taken  by 
all  the  boats,  amounted  to  two  thousand  barrels,  quite  till 
ing  the  lower  hold  of  the  llancocus,  and  furnishing  her 
with  more  than  half  of  a  full  cargo.  At  the  prices  which 
then  ruled  in  the  markets  of  Europe  and  America,  tlneei 
thousand  live  hundred  barrels  of  spermaceti,  with  a  due 
proportion  of  head  matter,  was  known  to  be  worth  near 
an  hundred  thousand  dollars;  and  might  be  set  down  as 
large  a  return  for  labour,  as  men  could  obtain  under  the 
most  advantageous  circumstances. 


CHAITMU    XXV. 

"  The  forest  reels  beneath  the  vtroke 

Of  sturdy  woodman's  nxo  ; 
Tin-  raitli  ii-i-rivcH  the  while  man's  yoke, 

And  p:iyn  lu-r  willing  tax 

Of  fruit*,  and  flowers,  and  golden  harvest  field*, 
And  all  that  nature  to  blithe  labour  yields." 

I'AIH.IUNCJ 

NOTWITHSTANDING  the  great  success  which  attended  the- 
beginning  of  the,  whaling,  it  was  six  months  Itelnre  th<< 
KancoouH  was  loaded,  and  ready  to  Bail  for  Mainline,",!! 
with  her  cargo.  This  time  the  ship  went  east,  at  once, 


368  THE   CRATER; 

instead  of  sailing  to  the  westward,  as  she  had  previously 
done — taking  with  her  a  crew  composed  partly  of  colonists 
and  partly  of  Kannakas.  Six  boys,  however,  went  in  the 
ship,  the  children  of  reputable  settlers ;  all  of  whom  the 
governor  intended  should  be  officers,  hereafter,  on  board 
of  colony  vessels.  To  prevent  difficulties  on  the  score  of 
national  character,  on  leaving  America  the  last  time, 
Saunders  had  cleared  for  the  islands  of  the  Pacific  and  a 
market;  meaning  to  cover  his  vessel,  let  her  go  where  she 
might,  by  the  latter  reservation.  This  question  of  nation 
ality  offered  a  good  deal  of  embarrassment  in  the  long  run, 
and  the  council  foresaw  future  embarrassments  as  con 
nected  with  the  subject;  but,  every  one  of  the  colonists 
being  of  American  birth,  and  America  being  then  neutral, 
and  all  the  American-built  vessels  having  American  papers, 
it  was  thought  most  prudent  to  let  things  take  their  natural 
course,  under  the  existing  arrangement,  until  something 
occurred  to  render  a  more  decided  policy  advisable. 

As  soon  as  the  Rancocus  got  off,  the  Henlopen  went 
out  again,  to  cruise  about  two  hundred  leagues  to  wind 
ward  ;  while  the  inshore  fishery  was  carried  on  by  Belts, 
in  the  Martha,  with  great  spirit  and  most  extraordinary 
success.  So  alive  did  the  people  get  to  be  to  the  profit 
and  sport  of  this  sort  of  business,  that  boats  were  con 
structed,  and  crews  formed  all  over  the  colony,  there  being 
often  as  many  as  a  dozen  different  parties  out,  taking 
whales  near  the  coasts.  The  furor  existed  on  the  Peak, 
as  well  as  in  the  low  lands,  and  Bridget  and  Anne  could 
not  but  marvel  that  men  would  quit  the  delicious  coolness, 
the  beautiful  groves,  and  all  the  fruits  and  bountiful  pro 
ducts  of  that  most  delightful  plain,  to  go  out  on  the  ocean, 
in  narrow  quarters,  and  under  a  hot  sun,  to  risk  their  lives 
in  chase  of  the  whale!  This  did  the  colonists,  neverthe 
less,  until  the  governor  himself  began  to  feel  the  necessity 
of  striking  a  whale,  if  he  would  maintain  his  proper  place 
in  the  public  opinion. 

As  respects  the  governor,  and  the  other  high  functiona 
ries  of  the  colony,  some  indulgence  was  entertained ;  it 
being  the  popular  notion  that  men  who  \ived  so  much 
within  doors,  and  whose  hands  got  to  be  so  soft,  were  not 
exactly  the  sort  of  persons  who  would  he  most  useful  at 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  369 

the  oar.  Heaton,  and  the  merchants,  Pennock,  and  the 
two  younger  Wcolstons,  with  the  clergyman,  were  easily 
excused  in  the  popular  mind ;  but  the  governor  was  known 
to  be  a  prime  seaman,  and  a  silent  expectation  appeared  to 
prevail,  that  some  day  he  would  be  seen  in  the  bow  of  a 
boat,  lancing  a  whale.  Before  the  first  season  was  over, 
this  expectation  was  fully  realized ;  Governor  Woolston 
heading  no  less  than  four  of  what  were  called  the  colony 
boats,  or  boats  that  belonged  to  the  state,  and  fished  as 
much  for  honour  as  profit,  taking  a  fine  whale  on  each 
occasion.  These  exploits. of  the  governor's  capped  the 
climax,  in  the  way  of  giving  a  tone  to  the  public  mind,  on 
the  subject  of  taking  whales.  No  man  could  any  longer 
doubt  of  its  being  honourable,  as  well  as  useful,  and  even 
the  boys  petitioned  to  be  allowed  to  go  out.  The  Kanna- 
kas,  more  or  less  of  whom  were  employed  in  each  vessel, 
rose  greatly  in  the  public  estimation,  and  no  young  man 
could  expect  to  escape  animadversion,  unless  he  had  been 
present  at  least  once  at  the  taking  of  a  whale.  Those  who 
had  struck  or  lanced  a  fish  were  now  held  in  a  propor 
tionate  degree  of  repute.  It  was,  in  fact,  in  this  group 
that  the  custom  originally  obtained,  which  prohibited  a 
young  man  from  standing  at  the  head  of  the  dance  who 
had  not  struck  his  fish ;  and  not  at  Nantucket,  as  has  been 
erroneously  supposed. 

In  a  community  where  such  a  spirit  was  awakened,  it  is 
not  surprising  that  great  success  attended  the  fisheries. 
The  Henlopen  did  well,  bringing  in  eight  hundred  barrels; 
but  she  found  six  hundred  more  in  waiting  for  her,  that 
had  been  taken  by  the  in-shore  fishermen ;  some  using  the 
Abraham,  some  the  Martha,  some  the  Anne,  and  others 
again  nothing  but  the  boats,  in  which  they  pursued  their 
game.  In  the  latter  cases,  however,  when  a  fish  was 
taken,  one  of  the  larger  vessels  was  usually  employed  to 
take  the  creature  into  the  Bight.  In  this  way  was  the  oil 
obtained,  which  went  to  make  up  a  cargo  for  the  Hen 
lopen.  The  governor  had  his  doubts  about  sending  this 
brig  on  so  distant  a  voyage,  the  vessel  being  so  slow ;  but 
there  was  no  choice,  since  she  must  go,  or  the  cargo  must 
remain  a  long  time  where  it  was.  The  brig  was  accord 
ingly  filled  up,  taking  in  seventeen  hundred  barrels ;  and 


370  THE   CRATER; 

she  sailed  for  Hamburgh,  under  the  command  of  a  young 
man  named  Thomas.  Walker  remained  behind,  prefer 
ring  to  superintend  the  whaling  affairs  at  home. 

So  high  did  the  fever  run,  by  this  time,  that  it  was  de 
termined  to  build  a  couple  of  vessels,  each  to  measure  about 
a  hundred  and  eighty  tons,  with  the  sole  object  of  using 
them  to  take  the  whale.  Six  months  after  laying  their 
keels,  these  little  brigs  were  launched ;  and  lucky  it  was 
that  the  governor  had  ordered  copper  for  a  ship  to  be 
brought  out,  since  it  now  came  handy  for  using  on  these 
two  craft.  But,  the  whaling  business  had  not  been  suffered 
to  lag  while  the  Jonas  and  the  Dragon  were  on  the  stocks ; 
the  Anne,  and  the  Martha,  and  the  single  boats,  being  out 
near  half  the  time.  Five  hundred  barrels  were  taken  in 
this  way;  and  Betts,  in  particular,  had  made  so  much 
money,  or,  what  was  the  same  thing,  had  got  so  much  oil, 
that  he  came  one  morning  to  his  friend  the  governor,  when 
the  following  interesting  dialogue  took  place  between  them, 
in  the  audience-chamber  of  the  Colony  House.  It  may  as 
well  be  said  here,  that  the  accommodations  for  the  chief 
magistrate  had  been  materially  enlarged,  and  that  he  now 
dwelt  in  a  suite  of  apartments  that  would  have  been  deemed 
respectable  even  in  Philadelphia.  Bridget  had  a  taste  for 
furniture,  and  the  wood  of  Rancocus  Island  admitted  of 
many  articles  being  made  that  were  really  beautiful,  and 
which  might  have  adorned  a  palace.  Fine  mats  had  been 
brought  from  China,  such  as  are,  and  long  have  been,  in 
common  use  in  America;  neat  and  quaint  chairs  and  set 
tees  had  also  been  in  the  governor's  invoices,  to  say  nothing 
of  large  quantities  of  fine  and  massive  earthenware.  In  a 
word,  the  governor  was  getting  to  be  rich,  and  like  all 
wealthy  men,  he  had  a  disposition  to  possess,  in  a  propor 
tionate  degree,  the  comforts  and  elegancies  of  civilized  life. 
But  to  come  to  our  dialogue — 

"Walk  in,  Captain  Betts — walk  in,  sir,  and  do  me  the 
favour  to  take  a  chair,"  said  the  governor,  motioning  to 
his  old  friend  to  be  seated.  "  You  are  always  welcome, 
here ;  for  I  do  not  forget  old  times,  I  can  assure  you,  my 
friend." 

"Thankee,  governor;  thankee,  with  all  my  heart.  I 
do  find  everything  changed,  now-a-days,  if  the  truth  must 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  371 

be  said,  but  yourself.  To  me,  you  be  always,  Mr.  Mark, 
and  Mr.  Woolston,  and  we  seem  to  sail  along  in  company, 
much  as  we  did  the  time  you  first  went  out  a  foremast-lad, 
and  1  teached  you  the  difference  between  a  flat-knot  and  a 
granny." 

"  No,  no,  Bob,  everything  is  not  so  much  changed  as 
you  pretend — I  am  not  changed,  in  the  first  place." 

"  I  confess  it — you  be  the  same,  governor,  blow  high, 
or  blow  low." 

"  Then  Martha  is  not  changed,  or  nothing  worth  men 
tioning.  A  little  more  matronly,  perhaps,  and  not  quite 
as  much  of  a  girl  as  when  you  first  made  her  acquaintance  ; 
but  Martha,  nevertheless.  And,  as  for  her  heart,  I  '11  an 
swer  for  it,  that  is  just  the  colour  it  was  at  sixteen." 

"  Why,  yes,  governor ;  'tis  much  as  you  say.  Marthy 
is  now  the  mother  of  four  children,  and  that  confarms  a 
woman's  appearance,  depend  on 't.  But,  Marthy  is  Mar 
thy;  and,  for  that  matter,  Miss  Bridget  is  Miss  Bridget, 
as  much  as  one  pea  is  like  another.  Madam  Woolston 
does  full  credit  to  the  climate,  governor,  and  looks  more 
like  eighteen  than  ever." 

"  My  wife  enjoys  excellent  health,  Betts;  and  grateful 
am  I  to  God  that  it  is  so.  But  I  think  all  our  women  have 
a  fresh  and  sea-air  sort  of  look,  a  cheerful  freshness  about 
them,  that  I  ascribe  to  the  salt  and  the  sea-breezes.  Then 
we  have  mountain  air,  in  addition,  on  the  Peak." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir — I  dare  say  you  've  got  it  right,  as  you  do 
most  matters.  Well,  governor,  I  don't  know  which  counts 
up  the  fastest  in  the  colony,  children  or  whales?" 

"  Both  flourish,"  answered  Mark,  smiling,  "  as  our  re 
ports  show.  Mr.  Secretary  tells  me  that  there  were,  on  the 
first  of  the  last  month,  three  hundred  and  eighteen  children 
in  the  colony  under  the  age  of  ten  years ;  of  whom  no  less 
than  one  hundred  and  ninety-seven  are  born  here — pure 
Craterinos,  including  your  children  and  mine,  Betts." 

"It's  a  fine  beginning,  governor — a  most  capital  start; 
and,  though  the  young  'uns  can't  do  much  at  taking  a 
whale,  or  securing  the  ile,  just  now,  they  '11  come  on  in 
their  turns,  and  be  useful  when  we  're  in  dock  as  hulks, 
nir." 

"  Talking  of  oil,  you  must  be  getting  rich,  Captain 


372  THE  CRATER; 

Belts.     I  hear  you  got  in  another  hundred-barrel  gentleman 
last  week !" 

"Times  is  altered  with  me,  governor;  and  times  is 
altered  with  you,  too,  sir,  since  you  and  I  rafted  loarn  and 
sea-weed,  to  raise  a  few  cucumbers,  and  squashes,  and 
melons.  Then,  we  should  have  been  as  happy  as  princes 
to  have  had  a  good  roof  over  our  heads." 

"  I  trust  we  are  both  thankful,  where  thanks  are  due,  for 
all  this,  Setts?" 

"  Why,  yes,  sir,  I  endivour  so  to  be ;  though  men  is  des 
perate  apt  to  believe  they  desarve  all  they  get  but  the  ill 
luck.  I  and  Marthy  try  to  think  of  what  is  all  in  all  to  us, 
and  I  believe  Marthy  does  make  out  pretty  well,  in  that 
partic'lar,  accordin'  to  Friends'  ways;  though  I  am  often 
jammed  in  religion,  and  all  for  want  of  taking  to  it  early 
as  I  sometimes  think,  sir." 

"  There  is  no  doubt,  Betts,  that  men  grow  in  Christian 
character,  as  well  as  in  evil ;  and  the  most  natural  growth, 
in  all  things,  is  that  of  the  young.  A  great  deal  is  to  be 
undone  and  unlearned,  if  we  put  off  the  important  hour  to 
a  late  period  in  life." 

"  Well,  as  to  unParnin',  I  suppose  a  fellow  that  had  as 
little  edication  as  myself  will  have  an  easy  time  of  it,"  an 
swered  Betts,  with  perfect  simplicity  and  good  faith ;  "  for 
most  of  my  schoolin'  was  drowned  in  salt  water  by  the  time 
I  was  twelve." 

"  I  am  glad  of  one  thing,"  put  in  the  governor,  half  in 
a  congratulating  way,  and  half  inquiringly;  "  and  that  is, 
that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hornblower  takes  so  well  with  the  peo 
ple.  Everybody  appears  to  be  satisfied  with  his  ministra 
tions  ;  and  I  do  not  see  that  any  one  is  the  worse  for  them, 
although  he  is  an  Episcopalian." 

Betts  twisted  about  on  his  chair,  and  seemed  at  first  un 
willing  to  answer ;  but  his  natural  frankness,  and  his  long 
habits  of  intimacy  and  confidence  with  Mark  Woolston, 
both  as  man  and  boy,  forbade  his  attempting  anything 
seriously  in  the  way  of  concealment. 

"  Well,  governor,  they  do  say  that  '  many  men,  many 
minds,'"  he  replied,  after  a  brief  pause;  "and  I  suppose 
it's  as  true  about  religion,  as  in  a  judgment  of  ships,  or  in 
a  cb'ice  of  a  wife.  If  all  men  took  to  the  same  woman,  or 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  373 

all  seamen  shipped  for  the  same  craft,  a  troublesome  house 
hold,  and  a  crowded  and  onhealthy  vessel,  would  be  the 
upshot  on't." 

"  We  have  a  choice  given  us  by  Providence,  both  as  to 
ships  and  as  to  wives,  Captain  Betts;  but  no  choice  is 
allowed  any  of  us  in  what  relates  to  religion.  In  that,  we 
are  to  mind  the  sailor's  maxim, '  to  obey  orders  if  we  break 
owners."' 

"  Little  fear  of  *  breaking  owners,'  I  fancy,  governor. 
But,  the  difficulty  is  to  know  what  orders  is.  Now,  Friends 
doesn't  hold,  at  all,  to  dressing  and  undressing  in  church 
time;  and  I  think,  myself,  books  is  out  of  place  in  praying 
to  God." 

"  And  is  there  much  said  among  the  people,  Captain 
Betts,  about  the  parson's  gown  and  surplice,  and  about  his 
reading  his  prayers,  instead  of  writing  them  out,  and  get 
ting  them  by  heart  1" 

There  was  a  little  malice  in  the  governor's  question,  for 
ne  was  too  much  behind  the  curtain  to  be  the  dupe  of  any 
pretending  claims  to  sudden  inspirations,  and  well  knew 
that  every  sect  had  its  liturgy,  though  only  half-a-dozen 
have  the  honesty  to  print  them.  The  answer  of  his  friend 
was,  as  usual,  frank,  and  to  the  point. 

"  I  cannot  say  but  there  is,  Mr.  Mark.  As  for  the 
clothes,  women  will  talk  about  them,  as  you  well  know, 
sir ;  it  being  their  natur'  to  be  dressing  themselves  out,  so 
much.  Then  as  to  praying  from  the  book,  quite  half  of 
our  people  think  it  is  not  any  better  than  no  praying  at  all. 
A  little  worse,  perhaps,  if  truth  was  spoken." 

"  I  am  sorry  to  hear  this,  Betts.  From  the  manner  in 
which  they  attend  the  services,  I  was  in  hopes  that  preju 
dices  were  abating,  and  that  everybody  Was  satisfied." 

"  I  dcn't  think,  governor,  that  there  is  any  great  danger 
of  a  mutiny;  though,  many  men,  many  minds,  as  I  said 
before.  But,  my  business  here  is  forgotten  all  this  time ; 
and  I  know  it  is  n't  with  your  honour  now  as  it  used  to  be 
with  us  both,  when  we  had  nothing  to  think  of  but  the 
means  of  getting  away  from  this  place,  into  some  other 
that  we  fancied  might  be  better.  I  wish  you  joy,  sir,  in 
having  got  the  two  new  brigs  into  the  water." 
32 


374  THE   CRATER; 

"Thank  you,  Captain  Belts.     Does  your  present  visi 
relate  to  either  of  those  brigs?" 

"Why,  to  come  to  the  p'int,  it  does,  sir.  I've  taken 
a  fancy  to  the  Dragon,  and  should  like  to  buy  her." 

"Buy  her!  Have  you  any  notion  what  such  a  vessel 
will  cost,  Betts  ?" 

"  Not  a  great  way  from  eight  thousand  dollars,  I  should 
think,  governor,  now  that  the  copper  is  on.  Some  things 
is  charged  high,  in  this  part  of  the  world,  about  a  wessel, 
and  other  some  is  n't.  Take  away  the  copper,  and  I  should 
think  a  good  deal  less  would  buy  either." 

"  And  have  you  eight  thousand  dollars  at  command,  my 
friend,  with  which  to  purchase  the  brig?" 

"  If  ile  is  money,  yes ;  if  ile  is  n't  money,  no.  I  've  got 
three  hundred  barrels  on  hand,  one  hundred  of  which  is 
head-matter." 

"  I  rejoice  to  hear  this,  Captain  Betts,  and  the  brig  you 
shall  have.  I  thought  to  have  sold  both  to  the  merchants, 
for  I  did  not  suppose  any  one  else,  here,  could  purchase 
them ;  but  I  would  greatly  prefer  to  see  one  of  them  in  the 
hands  of  an  old  friend.  You  shall  have  the  Dragon,  Betts, 
since  you  like  her." 

"Done  and  done  between  gentlemen,  is  enough,  sir; 
not  that  I  set  myself  up  for  a  gentleman,  governor,  but  I  've 
lived  too  long  and  too  much  in  your  respected  society  not 
to  have  1'arn'd  some  of  the  ways.  The  brig's  mine,  if  ile 
will  pay  for  her.  And  now,  sir,  having  completed  the 
trade,  I  should  like  to  know  if  your  judgment  and  mine  be 
the  same.  I  say  the  Dragon  will  beat  the  Jonas  half  a 
knot,  the  best  day  the  Jonas  ever  seed." 

"  I  do  not  know  but  you  are  right,  Bob.  In  looking  at 
the  two  craft,  last  evening,  I  gave  the  preference  to  the 
Dragon,  though  I  kept  my  opinion  to  myself,  lest  I  might 
mortify  those  who  built  the  Jonas." 

"Well,  sir,  I'm  better  pleased  to  hear  this,  than  to  be 
able  to  pay  for  the  brig!  It  is  something  to  a  plain  body 
like  myself,  to  find  his  judgment  upheld  by  them  that  know 
all  about  a  matter." 

In  this  friendly  and  perfectly  confidential  way  did  Mark 
Woolston  still  act  with  his  old  and  long-tried  friend,  Ro 
bert  Betts.  The  Dragon  was  cheap  at  the  money  men- 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  375 

tioned,  and  the  governor  took  all  of  the  old  seaman's  '  ile* 
at  the  very  top  of  the  market.  This  purchase  at  once  ele 
vated  Belts  in  the  colony,  to  a  rank  but  a  little  below  that 
of  the  'gentlemen,'  if  his  modesty  disposed  him  to  decline 
being  classed  absolutely  with  them.  What  was  more,  it 
put  him  in  the  way  of  almost  coining  money.  The  brig 
he  purchased  turned  out  to  be  as  fast  as  he  expected,  and 
what  was  more,  the  character  of  a  lucky  vessel,  which  she 
got  the  very  first  cruise,  never  left  her,  and  gave  her  com 
mander  and  owner,  at  all  times,  a  choice  of  hanfls. 

The  governor  sold  the  Jonas  to  the  merchants,  and  took 
the  Martha  off  Belts'  hands,  causing  this  latler  craft  to 
run  regularly,  and  at  staled  hours,  from  point  to  point 
among  the  islands,  in  the  character  of  a  packet.  Twice  a 
week  she  passed  from  the  Reef  to  the  Cove  at  the  Peak, 
and  once  a  fortnight  she  went  to  Rancocus  Island.  In 
addition  to  her  other  duties,  this  sloop  now  carried  the 
mail. 

A  post-office  law  was  passed  by  the  council,  and  was 
approved  of  by  the  governor.  In  that  day,  and  in  a  com 
munity  so  simple  and  practical,  new-fangled  theories  con 
cerning  human  rights  were  not  allowed  to  interfere  with 
regulations  that  were  obviously  necessary  to  the  comfort 
and  convenience  of  the  public. 

Fortunalely,  ihere  was  yel  no  newspaper,  a  species  of 
luxury,  which,  like  the  gallows,  comes  in  only  as  sociely 
advances  lo  ihe  corrupt  condition ;  or  which,  if  it  happen 
to  precede  it  a  little,  is  very  certain  soon  to  conduct  it 
there.  If  every  instilulion  became  no  more  than  what  it 
was  designed  to  be,  by  those  who  originally  framed  -it,  the 
stale  of  man  on  earlh  would  be  very  different  from  what  it 
is.  The  unchecked  means  of  publicity,  out  of  all  question, 
are  indispensable  to  the  circulation  of  truths;  and  it  is 
equally  certain  that  the  unrestrained  means  of  publicity 
are  equally  favourable  to  the  circulalion  of  lies.  If  we 
cannol  gel  along  safely  wilhoul  the  possession  of  one  of 
these  advantages,  neither  can  we  get  along  very  safely 
while  existing  under  the  daily,  hourly,  increasing  influence 
of  the  other — call  it  what  you  will.  If  truth  is  all-important, 
in  one  sense,  falsehood  is  all-important  too,  in  a  contrary 
Dense. 


376  THE   CRATER; 

Had  there  been  a  newspaper  at  the  Crater,  under  the 
control  of  some  philosopher,  who  had  neither  native  talent, 
nor  its  substitute  education,  but  who  had  been  struck  out 
of  a  printer's  devil  by  the  rap  of  a  composing-stick,  as 
Minerva  is  reported  to  have  been  struck,  full-grown,  out 
of  Jupiter's  head  by  the  hammer  of  Vulcan,  it  is  probable 
that  the  wiseacre  might  have  discovered  that  it  was  an 
inexcusable  interference  with  the  rights  of  the  colonists, 
to  enact  that  no  one  should  carry  letters  for  hire,  but  those 
connected  with  the  regular  post-office.  But,  no  such  per 
son  existing,  the  public  mind  was  left  to  the  enjoyment  of 
its  common-sense  ignorance,  which  remained  satisfied  with 
the  fact  that,  though  it  might  be  possible  to  get  a  letter 
carried  from  the  Reef  to  the  Cove,  between  which  places 
the  communications  were  constant  and  regular,  for  half  the 
money  charged  by  the  office,  yet  it  was  not  possible  to  get 
letters  carried  between  some  of  the  other  points  in  the 
colony  for  twenty  times  the  regulated  postage.  It  is  probable, 
therefore,  that  the  people  of  the  Crater  and  the  Peak  felt, 
that  in  supporting  a  general  system,  which  embraced  the 
good  of  all,  they  did  more  towards  extending  civilization, 
than  if  they  killed  the 'hen,  at  once,  in  order  to  come  at 
the  depository  of  the  golden  eggs,  in  the  shortest  way. 

In  the  middle  ages,  he  who  wished  to  send  a  missive, 
was  compelled,  more  than  half  the  time,  to  be  at  the  ex 
pense  of  a  special  messenger.  The  butchers,  and  a  class 
of  traders  that  corresponds,  in  part,  to  the  modern  English 
traveller,  took  charge  of  letters,  on  the  glorious  Free  Trade 
principle;  and  sometimes  public  establishments  hired  mes 
sengers  to  go  back  and  forth,  for  their  own  purposes. 
Then,  the  governments,  perceiving  the  utility  of  such  ar 
rangements,  imperfect  as  they  were,  had  a  sort  of  post- 
offices  for  their  use,  which  have  reached  down  to  our  own 
times,  in  the  shape  of  government  messengers.  There  can 
be  little  doubt  that  the  man  who  found  he  could  get  a  letter 
safely  and  promptly  conveyed  five  hundred  miles  for  a 
crown,  after  having  been  obliged  previously  to  pay  twenty 
for  the  same  service,  felt  that  he  was  the  obliged  party, 
and  never  fancied  for  a  moment,  that,  in  virtue  of  his 
patronage,  he  was  entitled  to  give  himself  airs,  and  to 
etand  upon  his  natural  right  to  have  a  post-office  of  his 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  377 

own,  at  the  reduced  price.  But,  indulgence  creates  wan 
tonness,  and  the  very  men  who  receive  the  highest  favours 
from  the  post-offices  of  this  country,  in  which  a  letter  is 
carried  five-and-twenty  hundred  miles  for  ten  cents,  pene 
trating,  through  some  fourteen  or  fifteen  thousand  offices, 
into  every  cranny  of  a  region  large  as  half  Europe,  kicks 
and  grows  restive  because  he  has  not  the  liberty  of  doing 
a  few  favoured  portions  of  the  vast  enterprise  for  himself; 
while  he  imposes  on  the  public  the  office  of  doing  that 
which  is  laborious  arid  unprofitable  !  Such  is  man  ;  such 
did  he  become  when  he  fell  from  his  first  estate ;  and  such 
is  he  likely  to  continue  to  be  until  some  far  better  panacea 
shall  be  discovered  for  his  selfishness  and  cupidity,  than 
what  is  called  '  self-government.' 

But  the  Craterinos  were  thankful  when  they  found  that 
the  Martha  was  set  to  running  regularly,  from  place  to 
place,  carrying  passengers  and  the  mails.  The  two  busi 
nesses  were  blended  together  for  the  sake  of  economy,  and 
at  the  end  of  a  twelvemonth  it  was  found  that  the  colony 
had  nothing  extra  to  pay.  On  the  whole,  the  enterprise 
may  be  said  to  have  succeeded ;  and  as  practice  usually 
improves  all  such  matters,  in  a  few  months  it  was  ascer 
tained  that  another  very  important  step  had  been  taken  on 
the  high-road  of  civilization.  Certainly,  the  colonists  could 
not  be  called  a  letter-writing  people,  considered  as  a  whole, 
but  the  facilities  offered  a  temptation  to  improve,  and,  in 
time,  the  character  of  the  entire  community  received  a 
beneficial  impression  from  the  introduction  of  the  mails. 

It  was  not  long  after  the  two  brigs  were  sold,  and  just 
as  the  Martha  came  into  government  possession,  that  all 
the  principal  functionaries  made  a  tour  of  the  whole  set 
tlements,  using  the  sloop  for  that  purpose.  One  of  the 
objects  was  to  obtain  statistical  facts ;  though  personal  ob 
servation,  with  a  view  to  future  laws,  was  the  principal 
motive.  The  governor,  secretary,  attorney-general,  and 
most  of  the  council  were  along;  and  pleasure  and  business 
being  thus  united,  their  wives  were  also  of  the  party. 
There  being  no  necessity  for  remaining  in  the  Martha  at 
night,  that  vessel  was  found  amply  sufficient  for  all  other 
purposes, though  the  "progress"  occupied  fully  a  fortnight. 
As  a  brief  relation  of  its  details  will  give  the  reader  a  fulj 
32* 


378  THE   CRATER; 

idea  of  the  present  state  of  the  "  country,"  as  the  colonists 
now  began  to  call  their  territories,  we  propose  to  accom-. 
pany  the  travellers,  day  by  day,  and  to  give  some  short  ac 
count  of  what  they  saw,  and  of  what  they  did.  The 
Martha  sailed  from  the  cove  about  eight  in  the  morning, 
having  on  board  seventeen  passengers,  in  addition  to  two 
or  three  who  were  going  over  to  Rancocus  Island  on  their 
regular  business.  The  sloop  did  not  sail,  however,  directly 
for  the  last-named  island,  but  made  towards  the  volcano, 
which  had  of  late  ceased  to  be  as  active  as  formerly,  and 
into  the  condition  of  which  it  was  now  deemed  important 
to  make  some  inquiries.  The  Martha  was  a  very  fast  ves 
sel,  and  was  soon,  quietly  anchored  in  a  small  bay,  on  the 
leeward  side  of  the  island,  where  landing  was  not  only 
practicable  but  easy.  For  the  first  time  since  its  existence 
the  crater  was  ascended.  All  the  gentlemen  went  up, 
and  Heaton  took  its  measurement  by  means  of  instru 
ments.  The  accumulation  of  materials,  principally  ashes 
and  scoriae,  though  lava  had  begun  to  appear  in  one  or  two 
small  streams,  had  been  very  great  since  the  governor's 
first  visit  to  the  spot.  The  island  now  measured  about  two 
miles  in  diameter,  and  being  nearly  round,  might  be  said 
to  be  somewhere  near  six  in  circumference.  The  crater 
itself  was  fully  half  a  mile  in  diameter,  and,  at  that  mo 
ment,  was  quite  a  thousand  feet  in  height  above  the  sea. 
In  the  centre  of  this  vast  valley,  were  three  smaller  craters 
or  chimneys,  which  served  as  outlets  to  the  fires  beneath. 
A  plain  had  formed  within  the  crater,  some  four  hundred 
feet  below  its  summit,  and  it  already  began  to  assume  that 
sulphur-tinged  and  unearthly  hue,  that  is  so  common  in 
and  about  active  volcanoes.  Occasionally,  a  deep  roaring 
would  be  succeeded  by  a  hissing  sound,  not  unlike  that 
produced  by  a  sudden  escape  of  steam  from  a  boiler,  and 
then  a  report  would  follow,  accompanied  by  smoke  and 
stones ;  some  of  the  latter  of  which  were  projected  several 
hundred  yards  into  the  air,  and  fell  on  the  plain  of  the 
crater.  But  these  explosions  were  not  one-tenth  as  frequent 
as  formerly. 

The  result  of  all  the  observations  was  to  create  an  im 
pression  that  this  outlet  to  the  fires  beneath  was  approach 
ing  a  period  when  it  would  become  inactive,  and  when, 


OR,     VULCAHT^S     PEAK.  379 

indeed,  some  other  outlet  for  the  pent  forces  might  be 
made.  After  passing  half-a-day  on  and  around  the  vol 
cano,  even  Bridget  and  Anne  mustered  courage  and 
strength  to  ascend  it,  supported  by  the  willing  arms  of 
their  husbands.  The  females  were  rewarded  for  their 
trouble,  though  both  declared  that  they  should  ever  feel  a 
most  profound  respect  for  the  place  after  this  near  view  of 
its  terrors  as  well  as  of  its  beauties. 

On  quitting  the  volcano,  the  Martha  proceeded  directly 
to  leeward,  reaching  Rancocus  Island  about  sunset.  Here 
the  sloop  anchored  in  the  customary  haven,  and  everybody 
but  her  crew  landed.  The  fort  was  still  kept  up  at  this 
place,  on  account  of  the  small  number  of  the  persons  who 
dwelt  there,  though  little  apprehension  now  existed  of  a 
visit  from  the  natives;  with  the  exception  of  the  Kannakas, 
who  went  back  and  forth  constantly  on  board  the  different 
craft  in  which  they  were  employed,  not  a  native  had  been 
near  either  island  of  the  colony  since  the  public  visit  of 
young  Ooroony,  on  the  occasion  of  bringing  over  labeurers 
to  help  to  form  the  grounds  of  Colony  House.  The  number 
and  force  of  the  different  vessels  would  seem  to  have  per 
manently  settled  the  question  of  ascendency  in  those  seas, 
and  no  one  any  longer  believed  it  was  a  point  to  be  con 
troverted. 

The  population  on  Rancocus  Island  did  not  amount  to 
more  than  fifty  souls,  and  these  included  women  and 
children.  Of  the  latter,  however,  there  were  not  yet 
many ;  though  five  or  six  were  born  annually,  and  scarcely 
one  died.  The  men  kept  the  mill  going,  cutting  lumber 
of  all  sorts ;  and  they  made  both  bricks  and  lime,  in  suffi 
cient  quantities  to  supply  the  wants  of  the  two  other 
islands.  At  first,  it  had  been  found  necessary  to  keep  a 
greater  force  there,  but,  long  before  the  moment  of  which 
we  are  writing,  the  people  had  all  got  into  their  regular 
dwellings,  and  the  materials  now  required  for  building 
were  merely  such  as  were  used  in  additions,  or  new  con 
structions.  The  last,  however,  kept  the  men  quite  ac 
tively  employed ;  but,  as  they  got  well  paid  for  their  work, 
everybody  seemed  contented.  The  Martha  never  arrived 
without  bringing  over  quantities  of  fruits,  as  well  as  vege 
tables,  the  Rancocusers,  lumber-men  like,  paying  but  little 


380  THE   CRATER; 

attention  to  gardening  or  husbandry.  The  island  had  its 
productions,  and  there  was  available  land  enough,  perhaps, 
to  support  a  few  thousand  people,  but,  after  the  group  and 
the  Peak,  the  place  seemed  so  little  tempting  to  the  far 
mers,  that  no  one  yet  thought  of  using  it  for  the  ordinary 
means  of  supporting  life.  The  "  visitors,"  as  the  party 
called  themselves,  had  an  inquiry  made  into  the  state  of 
the  animals  that  had  been  turned  loose,  on  the  pastures  and 
mountain-sides  of  the  island,  to  seek  their  own  living. 
The  hogs,  as  usual,  had  increased  largely;  it  was  sup 
posed  there  might  be  near  two  hundred  of  these  animals, 
near  half  of  which,  however,  were  still  grunters.  The 
labourers  occasionally  killed  one,  but  the  number  grew  so 
fast  that  it  was  foreseen  it  would  be  necessary  to  have  an 
annual  hunt,  in  order  to  keep  it  down.  The  goats  did 
particularly  well,  though  they  remained  so  much  on  the 
highest  peaks  as  to  be  seldom  approached  by  any  of  the 
men.  The  cow  had  also  increased  her  progeny,  there 
being  now  no  less  than  four  younger  animals,  all  of  whom 
yielded  milk  to  the  people.  The  poultry  flourished  here, 
as  it  did  in  all  that  region,  the  great  abundance  of  fruit, 
worms,  insects,  &LC.  rendering  it  unnecessary  to  feed  them, 
though  Indian-corn  was  almost  to  be  had  for  the  asking, 
throughout  all  the  islands.  This  grain  was  rarely  har 
vested,  except  as  it  was  wanted,  and  the  hogs  that  were 
fattened  were  usually  turned  in  upon  it  in  the  fields. 

It  may  be  well  to  say,  that  practice  and  experience  had 
taught  the  colonists  something  in  the  way  of  fattening  their 
pork.  The  animals  were  kept  in  the  group  until  they  were 
about  eighteen  months  old,  when  they  were  regularly  trans 
ported  to  the  cove,  in  large  droves,  and  made  to  ascend  the 
steps,  passing  the  last  two  months  of  their  lives  amid  the 
delightful  groves  of  the  Peak.  Here  they  had  acorns  in 
abundance,  though  their  principal  food  was  Indian  corn, 
being  regularly  attended  by  Kannakas  who  had  been  trained 
to  the  business.  At  killing-time,  each  man  either  came 
himself,  or  sent  some  one  to  claim  his  hogs;  all  of  which 
were  slaughtered  on  the  Peak,  and  carried  away  in  the 
form  of  pork.  The  effect  of  this  change  was  to  make 
much  finer  meat,  by  giving  the  animals  a  cooler  atmosphere 
and  purer  food. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  381 

From  Rancocus  Island  the  Martha  sailed  for  the  group, 
which  was  visited  and  inspected  in  all  its  settlements  by  the 
governor  and  council.     The  policy  adopted  by  the  govern 
ment  of  the  colony  was  very  much  unlike  that  resorted  to 
in  America,  in  connection  with  the  extension  of  the  settle 
ments.     Here  a  vast  extent  of  surface  is  loosely  overrun, 
rendering  the  progress  of  civilization  rapid,  but  very  im 
perfect.     Were  the  people  of  the  United  States  confined  to 
one-half  the  territory  they  now  occupy,  there  can  be  little 
question  that  they  would  be  happier,  more  powerful,  more 
civilized,  and  less  rude  in  manners  and  feelings;  although 
it  may  be  high  treason  to  insinuate  that  they  are  not  all, 
men,  women  and  children,  already  at  the  ne  plus  ultra  of 
each  of  those  attainments.     But  there  is  a  just  medium  in 
the  density  of  human  population,  as  well  as  in  other  things; 
and  that  has  not  yet  been  reached,  perhaps,  even  in  the 
most  thickly   peopled   of  any  one  of  the  Old  Thirteen. 
Now,  Mark  Woolston  had  seen  enough  of  the  fruits  of  a 
concentrated  physical  force,  in  Europe,  to  comprehend  their 
value;  and  he  early  set  his  face  against  the  purely  skim 
ming  process.    He  was  resolved  that  the  settlements  should 
not  extend  faster  than  was  necessary,  and  that  as  much  of 
civilization  should   go  with  them   as  was   attainable.     In 
consequence  of  this  policy,  the  country  soon  obtained  a 
polished  aspect,  as  far  as  the  settlements  reached.     There 
were  four  or  five  distinct  points  that  formed  exceptions  to 
this  rule,  it  having  been  considered  convenient  to  make 
establishments  there,  principally  on  account  of  the  whalers. 
One,  and  the  largest  of  these  isolated  settlements,  was  in 
the  Whaling  Bight,  quite  near  to  Blubber  Islano,  where  a 
village  had  sprung  up,  containing  the  houses  and  shops 
of  coopers,  rope-makers,  boat-builders,  carpenters,  black 
smiths,  &<c. ;    men    employed   in   making  casks,  whaling 
gear,  and  boats.     There  also  were  the  dwellings  of  three 
or  four  masters  and  mates  of  vessels,  as  well  as  of  sundry 
boat-steerers.     In  the  whole,  there  might  have  been  fifty 
habitations  at  this  particular  point;  of  which  about  two- 
thirds  were  in  a  straggling  village,  while  the  remainder 
composed  so  ma.ny  farm-houses.     Everything  at  this  place 
denoted  activity  and  a  prosperous  business ;  the  merchants 
taking  the  oil  au  fast  as  it  was  ready,  and  returning  for  it, 


382  THE    CRATER; 

hoops,  iron  in  bars,  hemp,  and  such  other  articles  as  were 
wanted  for  the  trade. 

By  this  time,  the  Rancocus  had  returned,  and  had  dis 
charged  her  inward-bound  cargo  at  the  Reef,  bringing 
excellent  returns  for  the  oils  sent  to  Hamburgh.  She  now 
lay  in  Whaling  Bight,  being  about  to  load  anew  with  oil 
that  had  been  taken  during  her  absence.  Saunders  was  as 
busy  as  a  bee;  and  Mrs.  Saunders,  who  had  come  across 
from  her  own  residence  on  the  Peak,  in  order  to  remain  as 
long  as  possible  with  her  husband,  was  as  happy  as  the  day 
was  long ;  seeming  never  to  tire  of  exhibiting  her  presents 
to  the  other  women  at  the  Bight. 

At  the  Reef  itself,  an  exceedingly  well-built  little  town 
was  springing  up.  Since  the  removal  of  the  whaling  ope 
rations  to  the  Bight,  all  nuisances  were  abated,  and  the 
streets,  quays,  and  public  walks  were  as  neat  as  could  be 
desired.  The  trees  had  grown  wonderfully,  and  the  gar 
dens  appeared  as  verdant  and  fresh  as  if  they  had  a  hun 
dred  feet  of  loam  beneath  them,  instead  of  resting  on  solid 
lava,  as  was  the  fact.  These  gardens  had  increased  in 
numbers  and  extent,  so  that  the  whole  town  was  embedded 
in  verdure  and  young  trees.  That  spot,  on  which  .the  sun 
had  once  beaten  so  fiercely  as  to  render  it  often  too  hot  to 
be  supported  by  the  naked  foot,  was  now  verdant,  cool, 
and  refreshing,  equally  to  the  eye  and  to  the  feelings.  The 
streets  were  narrow,  as  is  desirable  in  warm  climates — 
thus  creating  shade,  as  well  as  increasing  the  draughts  of 
air  through  them;  it  being  in  the  rear  that  the  houses  ob 
tained  space  for  ventilation  as  well  as  for  vegetation.  The 
whole  number  of  dwellings  on  the  Reef  now  amounted  to 
sixty-four;  while  the  warehouses,  public  buildings,  ships, 
offices,  and  other  constructions,  brought  the  number  of  the 
roofs  up  to  one  hundred.  These  buildings,  Colony  House 
and  the  warehouses  excepted,  were  not  very  large  cer 
tainly,  but  they  were  of  respectable  dimensions,  and  neat 
and  well  put  together.  Colony  House  was  large,  as  has 
been  mentioned  ;  and  though  plain,  certain  ornaments  had 
been  completed,  which  contributed  much  to  its  appear 
ance.  Every  building,  without  exception,  had  some  sort 
of  verandah  to  it ;  and  as  most  of  these  additions  were 
now  embowered  in  shrubs  or  vines,  they  formed  delightful 
places  of  retreat  during  the  heat  of  the  day. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  383 

By  a  very  simple  process,  water  was  pumped  up  from  the 
largest  spring  by  means  of  wind-sails,  and  conveyed  in 
wooden  logs  to  every  building  in  the  place.  The  logs 
were  laid  through  the  gardens,  for  the  double  purpose  of 
getting  soil  to  cover  them,  and  to  put  them  out  of  the  way. 
Without  the  town,  a  regular  system  had  been  adopted,  by 
which  to  continue  to  increase  the  soil.  The  rock  was 
blown  out,  as  stone  was  wanted ;  leaving,  however,  a  quay 
around  the  margin  of  the  island.  As  soon  as  low  enough, 
the  cavities  became  the  receptacles  of  everything  that  could 
contribute  to  form  soil ;  and  one  day  in  each  month  was 
set  apart  for  a  "  bee;"  during  which  little  was  done  but  to 
transport  earth  from  Loam  Island,  which  was  far  from 
being  exhausted  yet,  or  even  levelled,  and  scattering  it  on 
those  hollow  spots.  In  this  manner,  a  considerable  extent 
of  surface,  nearest  to  the  town,  had  already  been  covered, 
and  seeded,  and  planted,  so  that  it  was  now  possible  to  walk 
from  the  town  to  the  crater,  a  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a 
mile,  and  be  the  whole  time  amid  flowering  shrubs,  young 
trees,  and  rich  grasses  ! 

As  for  the  crater  itself,  it  was  now  quite  a  gem  in  the 
way  of  vegetation.  Its  cocoa-nut  trees  bore  profusely;  and 
its  figs,  oranges,  limes,  shaddocks,  &/c.  &,c.,  were  not  only 
abundant,  but  rich  and  large.  The  Summit  was  in  spots 
covered  with  delicious  groves,  and  the  openings  were  of  as 
dark  a  verdure,  the  year  round,  as  if  the  place  lay  twenty 
degrees  farther  from  the  equator  than  was  actually  the 
case.  Here  Kitty,  followed  by  a  flock  of  descendants,  was 
permitted  still  to  rove  at  large,  the  governor  deeming  her 
rights  in  the  place  equal  to  his  own.  The  plain  of  the 
crater  was  mostly  under  tillage,  being  used  as  a  common 
garden  for  all  who  dwelt  in  the  town.  Each  person  was 
taxed  so  many  days,  in  work,  or  in  money,  agreeably  to  a 
village  ordinance,  and  by  such  means  was  the  spot  tilled ; 
in  return,  each  person,  according  to  a  scale  that  was  regu 
lated  by  the  amount  of  the  contribution,  was  allowed  to 
come  or  send  daily,  and  dig  and  carry  away  a  stated  quan 
tity  of  fruits  and  vegetables.  All  this  was  strictly  regu 
lated  by  a  town  law,  and  the  gardener  had  charge  of  the 
execution  of  the  ordinance ;  but  the  governor  had  privately 


384  THE   GRATER; 

intimated  to  him  that  there  was  no  necessity  for  his  being 
very  particular,  so  long  as  the  people  were  so  few,  and  the 
products  so  abundant.  The  entire  population  of  the  Reef 
proper  amounted,  at  this  visitation,  to  just  three  hundred 
and  twenty-six  persons,  of  whom  near  a  hundred  were 
under  twelve  years  of  age.  This,  however,  was  exclusively 
of  Kannakas,  but  included  the  absent  seamen,  whose  fami 
lies  dwelt  there  permanently. 

The  settlement  at  Dunks'  Cove  has  been  mentioned,  and 
nothing  need  be  said  of  it,  beyond  the  fact  that  its  agri 
culture  had  improved  and  been  extended,  its  trees  had 
grown,  and  its  population  increased.  There  was  another 
similar  settlement  at  East  Cove — or  Bay  would  be  the  bet 
ter  name — which  was  at  the  place  where  Mark  Woolston 
had  found  his  way  out  to  sea,  by  passing  through  a  narrow 
and  half-concealed  inlet.  This  entrance  to  the  group  was 
now  much  used  by  the  whalers,  who  fell  in  with  a  great 
many  fish  in  the  offing,  and  who  found  it  very  convenient 
to  tow  them  into  this  large  basin,  and  cut  them  up.  Thence 
the  blubber  was  sent  down  in  lighters  to  Whaling  Bight,  to 
be  tryed  out.  This  arrangement  saved  a  tow  of  some  five- 
and-twenty  miles,  and  often  prevented  a  loss  of  the  fish,  as 
sometimes  occurred  in  the  outside  passage,  by  having  it 
blown  on  an  iron-bound  coast.  In  consequence  of  these 
uses  of  the  place,  a  settlement  had  grown  up  near  it,  and 
it  already  began  to  look  like  a  spot  to  be  civilized.  As 
yet,  however,  it  was  the  least  advanced  of  all  the  settle 
ments  in  the  group. 

At  the  West  Bay,  there  was  a  sort  of  naval  station  and 
look-out  port,  to  watch  the  people  of  the  neighbouring  isl 
ands.  The  improvements  did  not  amount  to  much,  how 
ever,  being  limited  to  one  farm,  a  small  battery  that  com 
manded  the  roads,  and  a  fortified  house,  which  was  also  a 
tavern. 

The  agricultural,  or  strictly  rural  population  of  the 
group,  were  seated  along  the  different  channels  nearest  to 
the  Reef.  Some  attention  had  been  paid,  in  the  choice,  to 
the  condition  of  the  soil ;  but,  on  the  whole,  few  unoccupied 
spots  could  now  be  found  within  a  league  of  the  Reef,  and 
on  any  of  the  principal  passages  that  communicated  with 
the  different  islands.  There  were  foot-paths,  which  might 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  385 

be  used  by  horses,  leading  from  farm  to  farm,  along  the 
margins  of  the  channels ;  but  the  channels  themselves  were 
the  ordinary  means  of  communicating  between  neighbours. 
Boats  of  all  sorts  abounded,  and  were  constantly  passing 
and  repassing.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  the  vegetation  was 
luxuriant  and  marvellous.  Trees  were  to  be  seen  around 
the  houses,  that  elsewhere  might  have  required  three  times 
the  number  of  years  that  these  had  existed,  to  attain  the 
same  height. 

The  visitation  terminated  at  the  Peak.  This  place,  so 
aptly  likened  to  the  garden  of  Eden,  and  frequently  so 
called,  could  receive  very  little  addition  to  its  picturesque 
beauties  from  the  hand  of  man.  Parts  of  it  were  culti 
vated,  it  is  true ;  enough  to  supply  its  population  (rather 
more  than  three  hundred  souls)  with  food :  but  much  the 
greater  portion  of  its  surface  was  in  pasture.  The  build 
ings  were  principally  of  stones  quarried  out  of  the  cliffs, 
and  were  cool  as  well  as  solid  edifices.  They  were  low, 
however,  and  of  no  great  size  on  the  ground.  At  the  go 
vernor's  farm,  his  private  property,  there  was  a  dwelling  of 
some  pretension;  low,  like  all  the  rest,  but  of  considerable 
extent.  Here  Bridget  now  passed  much  of  her  time;  for 
here  it  was  thought  best  to  keep  the  children.  So  cool  and 
salubrious  was  the  air  on  the  Peak,  that  two  schools  were 
formed  here;  and  a  large  portion  of  the  children  of  the 
colony,  of  a  suitable  age,  were  kept  in  them  constantly. 
The  governor  encouraged  this  plan,  not  only  on  account 
of  the  health  of  the  children,  but  because  great  care  was 
taken  to  teach  nothing  but  what  the  children  ought  to 
learn.  The  art  of  reading  may  be  made  an  instrument  of 
evil,  as  well  as  of  good;  and  if  a  people  imbibe  false  prin 
ciples — if  they  are  taught,  for  instance,  that  this  or  that 
religious  sect  should  be  tolerated,  or  the  reverse,  because  it 
was  most  or  least  in  conformity  with  certain  political  insti 
tutions,  thus  rendering  an  institution  of  God's  subservient 
to  the  institutions  of  men,  instead  of  making  the  last  sub 
servient  to  the  first — why,  the  less  they  know  of  letters,  the 
better.  Everything  false  was  carefully  avoided,  and,  with 
no  great  pretensions  in  the  way  of  acquisitions,  the  schools 
of  the  Peak  were  made  to  be  useful,  and  at  least  innocent. 
One  thing  the  governor  strictly  enjoined ;  and  that  was,  to 
33 


386  THE  CRATER; 

teach  these  young  creatures  that  they  were  fallible  beings, 
carefully  avoiding  the  modern  fallacy  of  supposing  that  an 
infallible  whole  could  be  formed  of  fallible  parts. 

Such  is  an  outline  of  the  condition  of  the  colony  at  the 
period  which  we  have  now  reached.  Everything  appeared 
to  be  going  on  well.  The  Henlopen  arrived,  discharged, 
loaded,  and  went  out  again,  carrying  with  her  the  last  bar 
rel  of  oil  in  the  Bight.  The  whalers  had  a  jubilee,  for 
their  adventures  made  large  returns ;  and  the  business  was 
carried  on  with  renewed  spirit.  In  a  word,  the  colony  had 
reached  a  point  where  every  interest  was  said  to  be  pros 
perous — a  state  of  things  with  communities,  as  with  indi 
viduals,  when  they  are,  perhaps,  in  the  greatest  danger  of 
meeting  with  reverses,  by  means  of  their  own  abuses. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

"  Cruel  of  heart,  and  strong  of  arm, 

Proud  in  his  sport,  and  keen  for  spoil, 
He  little  reck'd  of  good  or  harm, 
Fierce  both  in  mirth  and  toil; 
Yet  like  a  dog  could  fawn,  if  need  there  were ; 
Speak  mildly  when  he  would,  or  look  in  fear." 

DANA. — The  Buccaneer. 

AFTER  the  visitation,  the  governor  passed  a  week  at  the 
Peak,  with  Bridget  and  his  children.  It  was  the  habit  of 
the  wife  to  divide  her  time  between  the  two  dwellings; 
though  Mark  was  so  necessary  to  her  as  a  companion,  in 
tellectually,  and  she  was  so  necessary  to  Mark,  for  the 
same  reason,  that  they  were  never  very  long  separated. 
Bridget  was  all  heart,  and  she  had  the  sweetest  temper 
imaginable;  two  qualities  that  endeared  her  to  her  hus 
band,  far  more  than  her  beauty.  Her  wishes  were  centred 
in  her  little  family,  though  her  kindness  and  benevolence 
could  extend  themselves  to  all  around  her.  Anne  she  loved 
as  a  sister  and  as  a  friend ;  but  it  would  not  have  been 
impossible  for  Bridget  to  be  happy,  had  her  fortune  been 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  387 

cast  on  the  Reef,  with  no  one  else  but  Mark  and  her  two 
little  ones. 

The  Peak,  proper,  had  got  to  be  a  sort  of  public  prome 
nade  for  all  who  dwelt  near  it.  Here  the  governor,  in  par 
ticular,  was  much  accustomed  to  walk,  early  in  the  day, 
before  the  sun  got  to  be  too  warm,  and  to  look  out  upon 
the  ocean  as  he  pondered  on  his  several  duties.  The  spot 
had  always  been  pleasant,  on  account  of  the  beauty  and 
extent  of  the  view ;  but  a  new  interest  was  given  to  it  since 
the  commencement  of  the  whaling  operations  in  the  neigh 
bourhood.  Often  had  Bridget  and  Anne  gone  there  to  see 
a  whale  taken ;  it  being  no  uncommon  thing  for  one  of  the 
boys  to  come  shouting  down  from  the  Peak,  with  the  cry 
of  "  a  fish — a  fish !"  It  was  by  no  means  a  rare  occurrence 
for  the  shore-boats  to  take  whales  immediately  beneath  the 
cliffs,  and  the  vessels  could  frequently  be  seen  to  windward, 
working  up  to  their  game.  All  this  movement  gave  life 
and  variety  to  the  scene,  and  contributed  largely  to  the 
spot's  becoming  a  favourite  place  of  resort.  The  very 
morning  of  the  day  that  he  intended  to  cross  over  to  the 
Reef,  on  his  return  from  the  "  progress,"  the  governor  and 
his  wife  ascended  to  the  Peak  just  as  the  s\m  was  rising. 
The  morning  was  perfectly  lovely;  and  never  had  the 
hearts  of  our  married  couple  expanded  more  in  love  to  their 
fellows,  or  been  more  profoundly  filled  with  gratitude  to 
God  for  all  his  goodness  to  them,  than  at  that  moment. 
Young  Mark  held  by  his  mother's  hand,  while  the  father 
led  his  little  daughter.  This  was  the  way  they  were  accus 
tomed  to  divide  themselves  in  their  daily  excursions,  it  pro 
bably  appearing  to  each  parent  that  the  child  thus  led  was 
a  miniature  image  of  the  other.  On  that  morning,  the 
governor  and  Bridget  were  talking  of  the  bounties  that  Pro 
vidence  had  bestowed  on  them,  and  of  the  numberless  de 
lights  of  their  situation.  Abundance  reigned  on  every  side  ; 
in  addition  to  the  productions  of  the  island,  in  themselves 
so  ample  and  generous,  commerce  had  brought  its  acquisi 
tions,  and,  as  yet,  trade  occupied  the  place  a  wise  discri 
mination  would  give  it.  All  such  interests  are  excellent 
as  incidents  in  the  great  scheme  of  human  happiness ;  but 
woe  betide  the  people  among  whom  they  get  to  be  princi 
pals  !  As  the  man  who  Jives  only  to  accumulate,  is  cer- 


388  THE   CRATER; 

tain  to  have  all  his  nobler  and  better  feelings  blunted  by 
the  grasping  of  cupidity,  and  to  lose  sight  of  the  great  ob 
jects  of  his  existence,  so  do  whole  communities  degenerate 
into  masses  of  corruption,  venality,  and  cupidity,  when 
they  set  up  the  idol  of  commerce  to  worship  in  lieu  of  the 
ever-living  God.  So  far  from  denoting  a  healthful  pros 
perity,  as  is  too  apt  to  be  supposed,  no  worse  signs  of  the 
condition  of  a  people  can  be  given,  than  when  all  other  in 
terests  are  made  to  yield  to  those  of  the  mere  money-get 
ting  sort.  Among  our  colonists,  as  yet,  commerce  occu 
pied  its  proper  place;  it  was  only  an  incident  in  their  state 
of  society,  and  it  was  so  regarded.  Men  did  not  search 
for  every  means  of  increasing  it,  whether  its  fruits  were 
wanted  or  not,  or  live  in  a  constant  fever  about  its  results. 
The  articles  brought  in  were  all  necessary  to  the  comfort 
and  civilization  of  the  settlements,  and  those  taken  away 
were  obtained  by  means  of  a  healthful  industry. 

As  they  ascended  the  height,  following  an  easy  path  that, 
led  to  the  Summit,  the  governor  and  his  wife  conversed 
about  the  late  visitation,  and  of  what  each  had  seen  that 
was  striking  and  worthy  of  comment.  Mark  had  a  coun 
cil  to  consult,  in  matters  of  state,  but  most  did  he  love  to 
compare  opinions  with  the  sweet  matronly  young  creature 
at  his  side.  Bridget  was  so  true  in  all  her  feelings,  so  just 
in  her  inferences,  and  so  kindly  disposed,  that  a  better 
counsellor  could  not  have  been  found  at  the  elbow  of  one 
intrusted  with  power. 

"  I  am  more  uneasy  on  the  subject  of  religion  than  on 
any  other,"  observed  the  governor,  as  he  helped  his  little 
companion  up  a  difficult  part  of  the  ascent.  "  While  out, 
I  took  great  pains  to  sound  the  people  on  the  subject,  and 
I  found  a  much  greater  variety  of  opinions,  or  rather  of 
feelings,  among  them  than  I  could  have  believed  possible, 
after  the  quiet  time  we  have  hitherto  had." 

"  After  all,  religion  is,  and  ought  to  be,  more  a  matter 
of  feeling,  than  of  reason,  Mark." 

"That  is  true,  in  one  sense,  certainly;  but,  it  should  be 
feeling  subject  to  prudence  and  discretion." 

"  Everything  should  be  subject  to  those  two  qualities, 
though  so  very  few  are.  I  have  all  along  known  that  the  min 
istrations  of  Mr.  Hornblower  were  only  tolerated  by  a  good 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  389 

number  of  our  people.  You,  as  an  Episcopalian,  have  not 
been  so  much  in  the  way  of  observing  this ;  for  others  have 
been  guarded  before  you ;  but,  rny  family  is  known  not  to 
have  been  of  that  sect,  and  I  have  been  treated  more 
frankly." 

"And  you  have  not  let  me  know  this  important  fact, 
Bridget !"  said  the  governor,  a  little  reproachfully. 

"  Why  should  I  have  added  to  your  other  cares,  by 
heaping  this  on  your  shoulder,  dear  Mark?  The  thing 
could  not  easily  be  prevented ;  though  I  may  as  well  tell 
you,  now,  what  cannot  much  longer  be  kept  a  secret — the 
Henlopen  will  bring  a  Methodist  and  a  Presbyterian  cler 
gyman  in  her,  this  voyage,  if  any  be  found  willing  to  emi 
grate;  and  I  have  heard,  lately,  that  Friends  expect  a 
preacher." 

"  The  law  against  the  admission  of  an  immigrant,  with 
out  the  consent  of  the  governor  and  council,  is  very  clear 
and  precise,"  answered  the  husband,  looking  grave. 

"  That  may  be  true,  my  love,  but  it  would  hardly  do  to 
tell  the  people  they  are  not  to  worship  God  in  the  manner 
that  may  best  satisfy  their  own  consciences." 

"  It  is  extraordinary  that,  as  there  is  but  one  God,  and 
one  Saviour,  there  should  be  more  than  one  mode  of  wor 
shipping  them !" 

"  Not  at  all  extraordinary,  my  dear  Mark,  when  yov 
come  to  consider  the  great  diversity  of  opinion  which  exists 
among  men,  in  other  matters.  But,  Mr.  Hornblower  has  a 
fault,  which  is  a  very  great  fault,  in  one  situated  as  he  is, 
without  a  competitor  in  the  field.  He  lays  too  much  stress 
on  his  particular  mission  ;  talking  too  much,  and  preaching 
too  much  of  his  apostolic  authority,  as  a  divine." 

"  Men  should  never  blink  the  truth,  Bridget ;  and  least 
of  all,  in  a  matter  as  grave  as  religion." 

"  Quite  right,  Mark,  when  it  is  necessary  to  say  any 
thing  on  the  subject,  at  all.  But,  after  all,  the  apostolic 
succession  is  but  a  means,  and  if  the  end  be  attainable 
without  dwelling  on  these  means,  it  seems  to  me  to  be 
better  not  to  conflict  with  the  prejudices  of  those  we  wish 
to  influence.  Remember,  that  there  are  not  fifty  real 
Episcopalians  in  all  this  colony,  where  there  is  only  one 
clergyman,  and  he  of  that  sect." 
33* 


390  THE  CRATER; 

.  "  Very  true ;  but,  Mr.  Hornblower  naturally  wishes  to 
make  them  all  churchmen." 

"  It  really  seems  to  me,  that  he  ought  to  be  content  with 
making  them  all  Christians." 

"  Perhaps  he  thinks  the  two  identical — necessary  to 
each  other,"  added  the  governor,  smiling  on  his  charming 
young  wife,  who,  in  her  own  person,  had  quietly  consented 
to  the  priestly  control  of  her  husband's  clergyman,  though 
but  half  converted  to  the  peculiar  distinctions  of  his  sect, 
herself. 

"  He  should  remember,  more  especially  in  his  situation, 
that  others  may  not  be  of  the  same  way  of  thinking.  Very 
few  persons,  I  believe,  inquire  into  the  reasons  of  what  they 
have  been  taught  on  the  subject  of  religion,  but  take  things 
as  they  find  them." 

"And  here  they  find  an  Episcopalian,  and  they  ought  to 
receive  him  confidingly." 

"  That  might  do  with  children,  but  most  of  our  people 
came  here  with  their  opinions  formed.  I  wish  Mr.  Horn- 
blower  were  less  set  in  his  opinions,  for  I  am  content  to  be 
an  Episcopalian,  with  you,  my  dear  husband ;  certain,  if  the 
authority  be  not  absolutely  necessary,  it  can,  at  least,  do 
no  harm." 

This  ended  the  conversation  at  that  time,  for  just  then 
the  party  reached  the  Peak.  Little,  however,  did  the  go 
vernor,  or  his  pretty  wife,  imagine  how  much  the  future 
was  connected  with  the  interest  of  which  they  had  just 
been  speaking,  or  dream  of  the  form  in  which  the  serpent 
of  old  was  about  to  visit  this  Eden  of  modern  times.  But 
occurrences  of  another  character  almost  immediately  at 
tracted  their  attention,  and  absorbed  all  the  care  and  energy 
of  the  colony  for  some  time.  Scarcely  was  the  party  on 
the  Peak,  when  the  keen,  lively  eyes  of  the  younger  Brid 
get  caught  sight  of  a  strange  sail ;  and,  presently,  another 
and  another  came  into  view.  In  a  word,  no  less  than  three 
vessels  were  in  sight,  the  first  that  had  ever  been  seen  in 
those  seas,  with  the  exception  of  the  regular  and  well- 
known  craft  of  the  colony.  These  strangers  were  a  ship 
and  two  brigs ;  evidently  vessels  of  some  size,  particularly 
the  first;  and  they  were  consorts,  keeping  in  company, 
and  sailing  in  a  sort  of  line,  which  would  seem  to  denote 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  391 

more  of  order  and  concert  than  it  was  usual  to  find  among 
merchantmen.  They  were  all  on  a  wind,  standing  to  the 
southward  and  eastward,  and  were  now,  when  first  seen, 
fairly  within  the  strait  between  the  Peak  and  the  group, 
unquestionably  in  full  sight  of  both,  and  distant  from  each 
some  five  or  six  leagues.  With  the  wind  as  it  was,  nothing 
would  have  been  easier  for  them  all,  than  to  fetch  far 
enough  to  windward  to  pass  directly  beneath  the  western 
cliffs,  and,  consequently,  directly  in  front  of  the  cove. 

Luckily,  there  were  several  lads  on  the  Peak,  early  as 
was  the  hour,  who  had  ascended  in  quest  of  the  berries  of 
certain  plants  that  flourished  there.  The  governor  in 
stantly  despatched  one  of  these  lads,  with  a  note  to  Hea- 
ton,  written  in  pencil,  in  which  he  desired  that  functionary 
to  send  a  messenger  down  to  the  cove,  to  prevent  any  of 
the  fishermen  from  going  out;  it  being  the  practice  of 
many  of  the  bays  to  fish  in  the  shade  of  the  cliffs,  to  lee 
ward,  ere  the  sun  rose  high  enough  to  make  the  heat  op 
pressive.  Hitherto,  the  existence  of  the  cove,  as  it  was 
believed,  remained  unknown  even  to  the  Kannakas,  and  a 
stringent  order  existed,  that  no  boat  should  ever  enter  it 
so  long  as  craft  was  in  sight,  which  might  have  any  of 
those  men  on  board  it.  Indeed,  the  whole  Peak  was  just 
as  much  a  place  of  mystery,  to  all  but  the  colonists,  as  it 
was  the  day  when  Waally  and  his  followers  were  driven 
away  by  their  superstitious  dread. 

Having  taken  this  precaution,  and  kept  the  other  lads  to 
send  down  with  any  farther  message  he  might  deem  neces 
sary,  the  governor  now  gave  all  his  attention  to  the  stran 
gers.  A  couple  of  glasses  were  always  kept  on  the  Peak, 
and  the  best  of  these  was  soon  in  his  hand,  and  levelled  at 
the  ship.  Bridget  stood  at  her  husband's  side,  eager  to 
hear  his  opinion,  but  waiting  with  woman's  patience  for 
the  moment  it  might  be  given  with  safety.  At  length  that 
instant  came,  and  the  half-terrified  wife  questioned  the  hus 
band  on  the  subject  of  his  discoveries. 

"  What  is  it,  Mark?"  said  Bridget,  almost  afraid  of  the 
answer  she  was  so  desirous  of  obtaining.  "Is  it  theRan- 
eocus?" 

"  If  the  Rancocus,  love,  be  certain  she  would  not  be 


392  THE   CRATER; 

coming  hither.  The  ship  is  of  some  size,  and  appears  to 
be  armed ;  though  I  cannot  make  out  her  nation." 

"  It  is  not  surprising  that  she  should  be  armed,  Mark. 
You  know  that  the  papers  Captain  Saunders  brought  us 
were  filled  with  accounts  of  battles  fought  in  Europe." 

"  It  is  very  true  that  the  whole  world  is  in  arms,  though 
that  does. not  explain  the  singular  appearance  of  these 
three  vessels,  in  this  remote  corner  of  the  earth.  It  is 
possible  they  may  be  discovery  ships,  for  wars  do  not  al 
ways  put  a  stop  to  such  enterprises.  They  appear  to  be 
steering  for  the  Peak,  which  is  some  proof  that  they  do 
not  know  of  the  existence  of  the  settlements  in  the  group. 
There  they  might  anchor ;  but  here,  they  cannot  without 
entering  the  cove,  of  which  they  can  know  nothing." 

"  If  discovery  vessels,  would  they  not  naturally  come 
first  to  the  Peak,  as  the  most  striking  object?" 

"  In  that  you  are  probably  right,  Bridget,  though  I  think 
the  commodore  would  be  apt  to  divide  his  force,  having 
three  ships,  and  send  one,  at  least,  towards  the  group,  even 
if  he  came  hither  with  the  others.  No  nation  but  Eng 
land,  however,  would  be  likely  to  have  vessels  of  that  cha 
racter  out,  in  such  a  war,  and  these  do  not  look  like  Eng 
lish  craft,  at  all.  Besides,  we  should  have  heard  something 
of  such  an  expedition,  by  means  of  the  papers,  were  there 
one  out.  It  would  be  bad  enough  to  be  visited  by  explor 
ers  ;  yet,  I  fear  these  are  worse  than  explorers." 

Bridget  very  well  understood  her  husband's  apprehen 
sions  on  the  subject  of  exploring  parties.  As  yet,  the 
colony  had  got  on  very  well,  without  having  the  question 
of  nationality  called  into  the  account ;  but  it  had  now  be 
come  so  far  important,  as,  in  a  small  way,  to  be  a  nursery 
for  seamen ;  and  there  was  much  reason  to  fear  that  the 
ruthless  policy  of  the  strong  would,  in  the  event  of  a  dis 
covery,  make  it  share  the  usual  fortunes  of  the  weak.  It 
was  on  account  of  this  dread  of  foreign  interference,  that 
so  much  pains  had  been  taken  to  conceal  the  history  and 
state  of  the  little  community,  the  strongest  inducements 
being  placed  before  all  the  seamen  who  went  to  Europe,  to 
be  discreet  and  silent.  As  for  the  Kannakas,  they  did  not 
know  enough  to  be  very  dangerous,  and  could  not,  at  all, 
give  any  accurate  idea  of  the  position  of  the  islands,  had 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  393 

they  been  better  acquainted  than  they  were  with  their  re 
lation  to  other  communities,  and  desirous  of  betraying 
them. 

The  governor  now  sent  another  note  down  to  Heaton, 
with  a  request  that  orders  might  be  forwarded  along  the 
cliffs,  for  every  one  to  keep  out  of  sight ;  as  well  as  direc 
tions  that  care  should  be  taken  not  to  let  any  smoke  even 
be  seen  to  rise  from  the  plain.  This  message  was  speedily 
followed  by  another,  directing  that  all  the  men  should  be 
assembled,  and  the  usual  preparations  made  for  defence. 
He  also  asked  if  it  were  not  possible  to  send  a  whale-boat 
out,  by  keeping  immediately  under  the  cliffs,  and  going 
well  to  windward,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  get  a  communi 
cation  across  to  the  Reef,  in  order  to  put  the  people 
on  their  guard  in  that  quarter.  One  or  two  whale-boats 
were  always  in  the  cove,  and  there  were  several  crews  of 
capital  oarsmen  among  the  people  of  the  Peak.  If  such  a 
boat  could  be  prepared,  it  was  to  be  held  in  readiness,  as 
the  governor  himself  might  deem  it  expedient  to  cross  the 
strait. 

All  this  time  the  strange  vessels  were  not  idle,  but  drew 
nearer  to  the  Peak,  at  a  swift  rate  of  sailing.  It  was  not 
usual  for  mere  merchantmen  to  be  as  weatherly,  or  to 
make  as  much  way  through  the  water,  as  did  all  these 
craft.  On  account  of  the  great  elevation  at  which  the 
governor  stood,  they  appeared  small,  but  he  was  too  much 
accustomed  to  his  situation  not  to  know  how  to  make 
the  necessary  allowances.  After  examining  her  well, 
when  she  was  within  a  league  of  the  cliffs,  he  came  to  the 
opinion  that  the  ship  was  a  vessel  of  about  six  hundred 
tons,  and  that  she  was  both  armed  and  strongly  manned. 
So  far  as  he  could  judge,  by  the  bird's-eye  view  he  got,  he 
fancied  she  was  even  frigate-built,  and  had  a  regular  gun- 
deck.  In  that  age  such  craft  were  very  common,  sloops 
of  war  having  that  construction  quite  as  often  as  that  of 
the  more  modern  deep-waisted  vessel.  As  for  the  brigs, 
they  were  much  smaller  than  their  consort,  being  of  less 
than  two  hundred  tons  each,  apparently,  but  also  armed 
and  strongly  manned.  The  armaments  were  now  easily  to 
be  seen,  as  indeed  were  the  crews,  each  and  all  the  vessels 


394  THE   CRATER; 

showing  a  great  many  men  aloft,  to  shorten  sail  as  they 
drew  nearer  to  the  island. 

One  thing  gave  the  governor  great  satisfaction.  The 
strangers  headed  well  up,  as  if  disposed  to  pass  to  wind 
ward  of  the  cliffs,  from  which  he  inferred  that  none  on 
board  them  knew  anything  of  the  existence  or  position  of 
the  cove.  So  much  care  had  been  taken,  indeed,  to  con 
ceal  this  spot  from  even  the  Kannakas,  that  ne  great  appre 
hension  existed  of  its  being  known  to  any  beyond  the  cir 
cle  of  the  regular  colonists.  As  the  ship  drew  still  nearer, 
and  came  more  under  the  cliffs,  the  governor  was  enabled 
to  get  a  better  view  of  her  construction,  and  of  the  nature 
of  her  armament.  That  she  was  frigate-built  was  now 
certain,  and  the  strength  of  her  crew  became  still  more 
evident,  as  the  men  were  employed  in  shortening  and 
making  sail  almost  immediately  under  his  eye. 

Great  care  was  taken  that  no  one  should  be  visible  on 
the  Peak.  Of  the  whole  island,  that  was  the  only  spot 
where  there  was  much  danger  of  a  man's  being  seen  from 
the  ocean;  for  the  fringe  of  wood  had  been  religiously 
preserved  all  around  the  cliffs.  But,  with  the  exception  of 
the  single  tree  already  mentioned,  the  Peak  was  entirely 
naked ;  and,  in  that  clear  atmosphere,  the  form  of  a  manr 
might  readily  be  distinguished  even  at  a  much  greater 
elevation.  But  the  glasses  were  levelled  at  the  strangers 
from  covers  long  before  prepared  for  that  purpose,  and  no 
fear  was  entertained  of  the  look-outs,  who  had  their  in 
structions,  and  well  understood  the  importance  of  caution. 

At  length,  the  vessels  got  so  near,  as  to  allow  of  the 
glasses  being  pointed  directly  down  upon  the  upper  deck 
of  the  ship,  in  particular.  The  strangers  had  a  little  diffi 
culty  in  weathering  the  northern  extremity  of  the  island, 
and  they  came  much  closer  to  the  cliffs  than  they  other 
wise  would,  in  order  to  do  so.  While  endeavouring  to 
ascertain  the  country  of  the  ship,  by  examining  her  people, 
the  governor  fancied  he  saw  some  natives  on  board  her. 
At  first,  he  supposed  there  might  be  Kannakas,  or  Mow- 
rees,  among  the  crew;  but,  a  better  look  assured  him  that 
the  Indians  present  were  not  acting  in  the  character  of 
sailors  at  all.  They  appeared  to  be  chiefs,  and  chiefs  in 
their  war-dresses.  This  fact  induced  a  still  closer  exami- 


OR,    VULCAN    S     PEAK.  395 

nation,  until  the  governor  believed  that  he  could  trace  the 
person  of  Waally  among  them.  The  distance  itself  was 
not  such  as  to  render  it  difficult  to  recognize  a  form,  or  a 
face,  when  assisted  by  the  glass ;  but  the  inverted  position 
of  all  on  board  the  ship  did  make  a  view  less  certain  than 
might  otherwise  have  been  the  case.  Still  the  governor 
grew,  at  each  instant,  more  and  more  assured  that  Waally 
was  there,  as  indeed  he  believed  his  son  to  be,  also.  By 
this  time,  one  of  the  men  who  knew  the  chief  had  come 
up  to  the  Peak,  with  a  message  from  Heaton,  and  he  was 
of  the  same  opinion  as  the  governor,  after  taking  a  good 
look  through  the  best  glass.  Bridget,  too,  had  seen  the 
formidable  Waally,  and  she  gave  it  as  her  opinion  that  he 
was  certainly  on  board  the  ship.  This  was  considered  as  a 
most  important  discovery.  If  Waally  were  there,  it  was 
for  no  purpose  that  was  friendly  to  the  colonists.  The 
grudge  he  owed  the  last,  was  enduring  and  deadly.  No 
thing  but  the  strong  arm  of  power  could  suppress  its  out- 
breakings,  or  had  kept  him  in  subjection,  for  the  last  five 
years.  Of  late,  the  intercourse  between  the  two  groups 
had  not  been  great ;  and  it  was  now  several  months  since 
any  craft  had  been  across  to  Ooroony's  islands,  from  the 
Reef.  There  had  been  sufficient  time,  consequently,  for 
great  events  to  have  been  planned  and  executed,  and,  yet, 
that  the  colonists  should  know  nothing  of  them. 

But,  it  was  impossible  to  penetrate  further  into  this 
singular  mystery,  so  long  as  the  strangers  kept  off  the  land. 
This  they  did  of  course,  the  three  vessels  passing  to  wind 
ward  of  the  Peak,  in  a  line  ahead,  going  to  the  southward, 
and  standing  along  the  cliffs,  on  an  easy  bowline.  The 
governor  now  sent  a  whale-boat  out  of  the  cove,  under  her 
sails,  with  orders  to  stand  directly  across  to  the  Reef, 
carrying  the  tidings,  and  bearing  a  letter  of  instructions  to 
Pennock  and  such  members  of  the  council  as  might  be 
present.  The  letter  was  short,  but  it  rather  assumed  the 
probability  of  hostilities,  while  it  admitted  that  there  was  a 
doubt  of  the  issue.  A  good  look-out  was  to  be  kept,  at  all 
events,  and  the  forces  of  the  colony  were  to  be  assembled. 
The  governor  promised  to  cross  himself,  as  soon  as  the 
strangers  quitted  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Peak. 

In  the  mean  time,  Heaton  mounted  a  horse,  and  kept 


396  THE  CRATER; 

company  with  the  squadron  as  it  circled  the  island.  From 
time  to  time,  he  sent  messages  to  the  governor,  in  order  to 
let  him  know  the  movements  of  the  strangers.  While  this 
was  going  on,  the  men  were  all  called  in  from  their  seve 
ral  occupations,  and  the  prescribed  arrangements  were 
made  for  defence.  As  a  circuit  of  the  island  required 
several  hours,  there  was  time  for  everything;  and  the 
whale-boat  was  fairly  out  of  sight  from  even  the  Peak, 
when  Heaton  despatched  a  messenger  to  say  that  the 
squadron  had  reached  the  southern  extremity  of  the  island, 
and  was  standing  off  south-east,  evidently  steering  towards 
the  volcano. 

Doubts  now  began  to  be  felt  whether  the  colonists  would 
see  anything  more  of  the  strangers.  It  was  natural  that 
navigators  should  examine  unknown  islands,  cursorily  at 
least ;  but  it  did  not  follow  that,  if  trade  was  their  object, 
they  should  delay  their  voyage  in  order  to  push  their  inves 
tigations  beyond  a  very  moderate  limit.  Had  it  not  been 
for  the  undoubted  presence  of  savages  in  the  ship,  and  the 
strong  probability  that  Waally  was  one  of  them,  the  go 
vernor  would  now  have  had  hopes  that  he  had  seen  the 
last  of  his  visitors.  Nevertheless,  there  was  the  chance 
that  these  vessels  would  run  down  to  Rancocus  Island, 
where  not  only  might  a  landing  be  easily  effected,  but 
where  the  mills,  the  brick-yards,  and  indeed  the  principal 
cluster  of  houses,  were  all  plainly  to  be  seen  from  the  offing. 
No  sooner  was  it  certain,  therefore,  that  the  strangers  had 
stood  away  to  the  southward  and  eastward,  than  another 
boat  was  sent  across  to  let  the  millers,  brickmakers,  stone- 
quarriers,  and  lumbermen  know  that  they  might  receive 
guests  who  would  require  much  discretion  in  their  recep 
tion. 

The  great  policy  of  secrecy  was  obviously  in  serious 
danger  of  being  defeated.  How  the  existence  of  the  co 
lony  was  to  be  concealed,  should  the  vessels  remain  any 
time  in  the  group,  it  was  not  easy  to  see ;  and  that  advan 
tage  the  governor  and  Heaton,  both  of  whom  attached  the 
highest  importance  to  it,  were  now  nearly  ready  to  aban 
don  in  despair.  Still,  neither  thought  of  yielding  even 
this  policy  until  the  last  moment,  and  circumstances  ren 
dered  it  indispensable;  for  so  much  reflection  had  been 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.-  397 

bestowed  on  that,  as  well  as  on  every  other  interest  of  the 
colony,  that  it  was  not  easy  to  unsettle  any  part  of  their 
plans — in  the  opinion  of  its  rulers,  at  least. 

A  sharp  look-out  for  the  squadron  was  kept,  not  only 
from  the  Peak,  but  from  the  southern  end  of  the  cliffs,  all 
that  day.  The  vessels  were  seen  until  they  were  quite 
near  to  the  volcano,  when  their  sudden  disappearance  was 
ascribed  to  the  circumstance  of  their  shortening  sail.  Per 
haps  they  anchored.  This  could  only  be  conjecture,  how 
ever,  as  no  boat  could  be  trusted  out  to  watch  them,  near 
by.  Although  there  was  no  anchorage  near  the  Peak,  it 
was  possible  for  a  vessel  to  anchor  anywhere  in  the  vici 
nity  of  the  volcano.  The  island  of  Vulcan's  Peak  appears 
to  have  been  projected  upwards,  out  of  the  depths  of  the 
ocean,  in  one  solid,  perpendicular  wall,  leaving  no  shallow 
water  near  it;  but,  as  respects  the  other  islands,  the  coast 
shoaled  gradually  in  most  places;  though  the  eastern  edge 
of  the  group  was  an  exception  to  the  rule.  Still,  vessels 
could  anchor  in  any  or  all  the  coves  and  roadsteads  of  the 
group;  and  there  the  holding  ground  was  unusually  good, 
being  commonly  mud  and  sand,  and  these  without  rocks. 

The  remainder  of  the  day,  and  the  whole  of  the  succeed 
ing  night,  were  passed  with  much  anxiety,  by  the  governor 
and  his  friends.  Time  was  given  to  receive  an  answer  to 
the  messages  sent  across  to  the  Reef,  but  nothing  was  seen 
of  the  strangers,  when  day  returned.  The  boat  that  came 
in  from  the  Reef,  reported  that  the  coast  was  clear  to  the 
northward.  It  also  brought  a  letter,  stating  that  notices 
had  been  sent  to  all  the  different  settlements,  and  that  the 
Anne  had  sailed  to  windward,  to  call  in  all  the  fishermen, 
and  to  go  off  to  the  nearest  whaling-ground,  in  order  to 
communicate  the  state  of  things  in  the  colony  to  Captain 
Betts  and  his  companions,  who  were  out.  The  Dragon 
and  the  Jonas,  when  last  heard  from,  were  cruising  only 
about  a  hundred  miles  to  windward  of  the  group,  and  it 
was  thought  important,  on  various  accounts,  that  they 
should  be  at  once  apprised  of  the  arrival  of  the  strangers. 

The  governor  was  perfectly  satisfied  with  the  report  of 

what  had  been  done,  and  this  so  much  the  more  because 

it  superseded  the  necessity  of  his  quitting  the  Peak,  just  at 

the  moment.     The  elevation  of  the  mountain  was  of  BO 

34 


398  THE   CRATER; 

much  use  as  a  look-out,  that  it  was  every  way  desirable  to 
profit  by  it,  until  the  time  for  observing  was  passed,  and 
that  for  action  had  succeeded,  in  its  stead.  Of  course^ 
some  trusty  person  was  kept  constantly  on  the  Peak,  look* 
ing  out  for  the  strangers,  though  the  day  passed  without 
one  of  them  being  seen.  Early  next  morning,  however,  a 
whale-boat  arrived  from  Rancocus,  with  four  stout  oarsmen 
in  it.  They  had  left  the  station,  after  dark,  and  had  been 
pulling  up  against  the  trades  most  of  the  intervening  time. 
The  news  they  brought  was  not  only  alarming,  but  it  occa 
sioned  a  great  deal  of  surprise. 

It  seemed  that  the  three  strange  vessels  appeared  off  the 
point,  at  Rancocus  Island,  early  on  the  morning  of  the 
preceding  day.  It  was  supposed  that  they  had  run  across 
from  the  volcano  in  the  da'rkness,  after  having  been  lost 
sight  of  from  the  Peak.  Much  prudence  was  observed  by 
the  colonists,  as  soon  as  light  let  them  into  the  secret  of 
their  having  such  unknown  neighbours.  Bigelow  happen 
ing  to  be  there,  and  being  now  a  man  of  a  good  deal  of 
consideration  with  his  fellow-citizens,  he  assumed  the  di 
rection  of  matters.  All  the  women  and  children  ascended 
into  the  mountains,  where  secret  places  had  long  been  pro 
vided  for  such  an  emergency,  by  clearing  out  and  render 
ing  two  or  three  caves  habitable,  and  where  food  and  water 
were  at  hand.  Thither  most  of  the  light  articles  of  value 
were  also  transported.  Luckily,  Bigelow  had  caused  all 
the  saws  at  the  mill,  to  be  taken  down  and  secreted.  A 
saw  was  an  article  not  to  be  replaced,  short  of  a  voyage  to 
Europe,  even ;  for  in  that  day  saws  were  not  manufactured 
in  America;  nor,  indeed,  was  scarcely  anything  else. 

When  he  had  given  his  directions,  Bigelow  went  alone 
to  the  point,  to  meet  the  strangers,  who  had  anchored  their 
vessels,  and  had  landed  in  considerable  force.  On  approach 
ing  the  place,  he  found  about  a  hundred  men  ashore,  all 
well  armed,  and  seemingly  governed  by  a  sort  of  military 
authority.  On  presenting  himself  before  this  party,  Bige 
low  was  seized,  and  taken  to  its  leader,  who  was  a  sea-far 
ing  man,  by  his  appearance,  of  a  fierce  aspect  and  most 
severe  disposition.  This  man  could  speak  no  English. 
Bigelow  tried  him  in  Spanish,  but  could  get  no  answer  out 
of  him  in  that  tongue  either ;  though  he  suspected  that 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  399 

what  he  said  was  understood.  At  length,  one  was  brought 
forward  who  could  speak  English,  and  that  so  well  as  to 
leave  little  doubt  in  Bigelow's  mind  about  the  stranger's 
being  either  an  Englishman  or  an  American.  Communi 
cations  between  the  parties  were  commenced  through  this 
interpreter. 

Bigelow  was  closely  questioned  touching  the  number  of 
people  in  the  different  islands,  the  number  of  vessels  they 
possessed,  the  present  situation  and  employments  of  those 
vessels,  the  nature  of  their  cargoes,  the  places  where  the 
property  transported  in  the  vessels  was  kept,  and,  in  short, 
everything  that  bore  directly  on  the  wealth  and  movable 
possessions  of  the  people.  From  the  nature  of  these  ques 
tions  as  well  as  from  the  appearance  of  the  strangers,  Bige 
low  had,  at  once,  taken  up  the  notion  that  they  were 
pirates.  In  the  eastern  seas,  piracies  were  often  commit 
ted  on  a  large  scale,  and  there  was  nothing  violent  in  this 
supposition.  The  agitated  state  of  the  world,  moreover, 
rendered  piracies  much  more  likely  to  go  unpunished  then 
than  would  be  the  case  to-day,  and  it  was  well  known  that 
several  vessels  often  cruised  together,  when  engaged  in 
these  lawless  pursuits,  in  those  distant  quarters  of  the 
world.  Then  the  men  were  evidently  of  different  races, 
though  Bigelow  was  of  opinion  that  most  of  them  came 
from  the  East  Indies,  the  coasts,  or  the  islands.  The  offi 
cers  were  mostly  Europeans  by  birth,  or  the  descendants 
of  Europeans ;  but  two-thirds  of  the  people  whom  he  saw 
were  persons  of  eastern  extraction ;  some  appeared  to  be 
Lascars,  and  others  what  sailors  call  Chinamen. 

Bigelow  was  very  guarded  in  his  answers;  so  much  so, 
indeed,  as  to  give  great  dissatisfaction  to  his  interrogators. 
About  the  Peak  he  assumed  an  air  of  great  mystery,  and 
said  none  but  birds  could  get  on  it ;  thunder  was  some 
times  heard  coming  out  of  its  cliffs,  but  man  could  not  get 
up  to  see  what  the  place  contained.  This  account  was 
received  with  marked  interest,  and  to  Bigelow's  surprise, 
it  did  not  appear  to  awaken  the  distrust  he  had  secretly 
apprehended  it  might.  On  the  contrary,  he  was  asked  to 
repeat  his  account,  and  all  who  heard  it,  though  a  good 
deal  embellished  this  time,  appeared  disposed  to  believe 
what  he  said.  Encouraged  by  this  success,  the  poor  fel- 


400  THE  GRATER; 

low  undertook  to  mystify  a  little  concerning  the  Reef;  but 
here  he  soon  found  himself  met  with  plump  denials.  In 
order  to  convince  him  that  deception  would  be  of  no  use, 
he  was  now  taken  a  short  distance  and  confronted  with 
Waally ! 

Bigelow  no  sooner  saw  the  dark  countenance  of  the 
chief  than  he  knew  he  was  in  bad  hands.  From  that  mo 
ment,  he  abandoned  all  attempts  at  concealment,  the  con 
dition  of  the  Peak  excepted,  and  had  recourse  to  an  oppo 
site  policy.  He  now  exaggerated  everything;  the  number 
and  force  of  the  vessels,  giving  a  long  list  of  names  that 
were  accurate  enough,  though  the  fact  was  concealed  that 
they  mostly  belonged  to  boats;  and  swelling  the  force  of 
the  colony  to  something  more  than  two  thousand  fighting 
men.  The  piratical  commander,  who  went  by  the  name 
of '  the  admiral'  among  his  followers,  was  a  good  deal  startled 
by  this  information,  appealing  to  Waally  to  know  whether 
it  might  be  relied  on  for  truth.  Waally  could  not  say 
yes  or  no  to  this  question.  He  had  heard  that  the  colo 
nists  were  much  more  numerous  than  they  were  formerly  ; 
but  how  many  fighting  men  they  could  now  muster  was 
more  than  he  could  say.  He  knew  that  they  were  enor 
mously  rich,  and  among  other  articles  of  value,  possessed 
materials  sufficient  for  fitting  out  as  many  ships  as  they 
pleased.  It  was  this  last  information  that  had  brought  the 
strangers  to  the  group ;  for  they  were  greatly  in  want  of 
naval  stores  of  almost  all  sorts. 

The  admiral  did  not  deem  it  necessary  to  push  his  in 
quiries  any  further  at  that  moment;  apparently,  he  did  not 
expect  to  find  much  at  Rancocus  Island,  Waally  having, 
most  probably,  let  him  into  the  secret  of  its  uses.  The 
houses  and  mills  were  visited  and  plundered ;  a  few  hogs 
and  one  steer  were  shot;  but  luckily,  most  of  the  animals 
had  been  driven  into  a  retired  valley.  The  saw-mill  wa^ 
set  on  fire  in  pure  wantonness,  and  it  was  burned  to  the 
ground.  A  new  grist-mill  escaped,  merely  because  its 
position  was  not  known.  A  great  deal  of  injury  was  in 
flicted  on  the  settlement  merely  for  the  love  of  mischief, 
and  a  brick-kiln  was  actually  blown  up  in  order  to  enjoy 
the  fun  of  seeing  the  bricks  scattered  in  the  air.  In  short, 
the  place  was  almost  destroyed  in  one  sense,  though  no 


OR,   VTJLCAN'S  PEAK.  401 

attempt  was  made  to  injure  Bigelow.  On  the  contrary,  he 
was  scarcely  watched,  and  it  was  no  sooner  dark  than  he 
collected  a  crew,  got  into  his  own  whale-boat,  and  carne  to 
windward  to  report  what  was  going  on  to  the  governor. 


CHAPTER  XXYII. 

"  All  gone !  'tis  ours  the  goodly  land — 
Look  round — the  heritage  behold  j 
Go  forth — upon  the  mountains  stand ; 
Then,  if  ye  can,  be  cold." 

SPBAGUE. 

LITTLE  doubt  remained  in  the  mind  of  the  governor, 
after  he  had  heard  and  weighed  the  whole  of  Bigelow's 
story,  that  he  had  to  deal  with  one  of  those  piratical  squad 
rons  that  formerly  infested  the  eastern  seas,  a  sort  of  suc 
cessor  of  the  old  buccaneers.  The  men  engaged  in  such 
pursuits,  were  usually  of  different  nations,  and  they  were 
always  of  the  most  desperate  and  ruthless  characters.  The 
fact  that  Waally  was  with  this  party,  indicated  pretty  plainly 
the  manner  in  which  they  had  heard  of  the  colony,  and,  out 
of  all  question,  that  truculent  chief  had  made  his  own  bar 
gain  to  come  in  for  a  share  of  the  profits. 

It  was  highly  probable  that  the  original  object  of  these 
freebooters  had  been  to  plunder  the  pearl-fishing  vessels, 
and,  hearing  at  their  haunts,  of  Betto's  group,  they  had 
found  their  way  across  to  it,  where,  meeting  with  Waally, 
they  had  been  incited  to  their  present  enterprise. 

Little  apprehension  was  felt  for  the  Peak.  A  vessel 
might  hover  about  it  a  month,  and  never  find  the  cove ; 
and  should  the  pirates  even  make  the  discovery,  such  were 
the  natural  advantages  of  the  islanders,  that  the  chances 
were  as  twenty  to  one,  they  would  drive  off  their  assailants. 
Under  all  the  circumstances,  therefore,  and  on  the  most 
mature  reflection,  the  governor  determined  to  cross  over  to 
the  Reef,  and  assume  the  charge  of  the  defence  of  that 
most  important  position.  Should  the  Reef  fail  into  the 
34* 


402  THE  CRATER; 

hands  of  the  enemy,  it  might  require  years  to  repair  the 
loss  ;  or,  what  would  be  still  more  afflicting,  the  freebooters 
might  hold  the  place,  and  use  it  as  a  general  rendezvous, 
in  their  nefarious  pursuits.  Accordingly,  after  taking  a 
most  tender  leave  of  his  wife  and  children,  Governor  Wool- 
ston  left  the  cove,  in  the  course  of  the  forenoon,  crossing 
in  a  whale-boat  rigged  with  a  sail.  Bridget  wished  greatly 
to  accompany  her  husband,  but  to  this  the  latter  would,  on 
no  account,  consent ;  for  he  expected  serious  service,  and 
thought  it  highly  probable  that  most  of  the  females  would 
have  to  be  sent  over  to  the  Peak,  for  eecurky.  Finding 
that  her  request  could  not  be  granted,  and  feeling  fully  the 
propriety  of  her  husband's  decision,  Mrs.  Woolston  so  far 
commanded  her  feelings  as  to  set  a  good  example  to  other 
wives,  as  became  her  station. 

When  about  mid-channel,  the  whale-boat  made  a  sail 
coming  down  before  the  wind,  and  apparently  steering  for 
South  Cape,  as  well  as  herself.  This  turned  out  to  be  the 
Anne,  which  had  gone  to  windward  to  give  the  alarm  to 
the  fishermen,  and  was  now  on  her  return.  She  had 
warned  so  many  boats  as  to  be  certain  they  would  spread 
the  notice,  and  she  had  spoken  the  Dragon,  which  had  gone 
in  quest  of  the  Jonas  and  the  Abraham,  both  of  which 
were  a  few  leagues  to  windward.  Capt.  Betts,  however, 
had  come  on  board  the  Anne,  and  now  joined  his  old 
friend,  the  governor,  when  about  four  leagues  from  the 
cape.  Glad  enough  was  Mark  Woolston  to  meet  with  the 
Anne,  and  to  find  so  good  an  assistant  on  board  her.  That 
schooner,  which  was  regularly  pilot-boat  built,  was  the 
fastest  craft  about  the  islands,  and  it  was  a  great  matter  to 
put  head-quarters  on  board  her.  The  Martha  came  next, 
and  the  whale-boat  was  sent  in  to  find  that  sloop,  which 
was  up  at  the  Reef,  and  to  order  her  out  immediately  to 
join  the  governor.  Pennock  was  the  highest  in  authority, 
in  the  group,  after  the  governor,  and  a  letter  was  sent  to 
him,  apprising  him  of  all  that  was  known,  and  exhorting 
him  to  vigilance  and  activity ;  pointing  out,  somewhat  in 
detail,  the  different  steps  he  was  to  take,  in  order  that  no 
time  might  be  lost.  This  done,  the  governor  stood  in  to 
wards  Whaling  Bight,  in  order  to  ascertain  the  state  of 
things  at  that  point. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  403 

The  alarm  had  been  given  all  over  the  group,  and  when 
the  Anne  reached  her  place  of  destination,  it  was  ascer 
tained  that  the  men  had  been  assembled  under  arms,  and 
every  precaution  taken.  But  Whaling  Bight  was  the  great 
place  of  resort  of  the  Kannakas,  and  there  were  no  less 
than  forty  of  those  men  there  at  that  moment,  engaged  in 
trying  out  oil,  or  in  fitting  craft  for  the  fisheries.  No  one 
could  say  which  side  these  fellows  would  take,  should  it 
appear  that  their  proper  chiefs  were  engaged  with  the 
strangers;  though,  otherwise,  the  colonists  counted  on 
their  assistance  with  a  good  deal  of  confidence.  On  all 
ordinary  occasions,  a  reasonably  fair  understanding  existed 
between  the  colonists  and  the  Kannakas.  It  is  true,  that 
the  former  were  a  little  too  fond  of  getting  as  much  work 
as  possible,  for  rather  small  compensations,  out  of  these 
semi-savages;  but,  as  articles  of  small  intrinsic  value  still 
went  a  great  way  in  these  bargains,  no  serious  difficulty 
had  yet  arisen  out  of  the  different  transactions.  Some 
persons  thought  that  the  Kannakas  had  risen  in  their  de 
mands,  and  put  less  value  on  a  scrap  of  old  iron,  than  had 
been  their  original  way  of  thinking,  now  that  so  many  of 
their  countrymen  had  been  back  and  forth  a  few  times, 
between  the  group  and  other  parts  of  the  world ;  a  cir 
cumstance  that  was  very  naturally  to  be  expected.  But 
the  governor  knew  mankind  too  well  not  to  understand 
that  all  unequal  associations  lead  to  discontent.  Men  may 
get  to  be  so  far  accustomed  to  inferior  stations,  and  to 
their  duties  and  feelings,  as  to  consider  their  condition  the 
result  of  natural  laws;  but  the  least  taste  of  liberty  begets 
a  jealousy  and  distrust  that  commonly  raises  a  barrier  be 
tween  the  master  and  servant,  that  has  a  never-dying  ten 
dency  to  keep  them  more  or  less  alienated  in  feeling. 
When  the  colonists  began  to  cast  about  them,  and  to  reflect 
on  the  chances  of  their  being  sustained  by  these  hirelings 
in  the  coming  strife,  very  few  of  them  could  be  sufficiently 
assured  that  the  very  men  who  had  now  eaten  of  their 
bread  and  salt,  in  some  instances,  for  years,  were  to  be 
relied  on  in  a  crisis.  Indeed,  the  number  of  these  Kanna 
kas  was  a  cause  of  serious  embarrassment  with  the  gover 
nor,  when  he  came  to  reflect  on  his  strength,  and  on  the 
means  of  employing  it. 


404  THE   CRATER; 

Fully  two  hundred  of  the  savages,  or  semi-savages,  were 
at  that  moment  either  scattered  about  among  the  farm 
houses,  or  working  at  the  different  places  where  shipping 
lay,  or  were  out  whaling  to  windward.  Now,  the  whole 
force  of  the  colony,  confining  it  to  fighting-rnen,  and  in 
cluding  those  who  were  absent,  was  just  three  hundred 
and  sixty-three.  Of  these,  three  hundred  might,  possibly, 
on  an  emergency,  be  brought  to  act  on  any  given  point, 
leaving  the  remainder  in  garrisons.  But  a  straggling  body 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty  of  these  Kannakas,  left  in  the  set 
tlements,  or  on  the  Reef,  or  about  the  crater,  while  the 
troops  were  gone  to  meet  the  enemy,  presented  no  very 
pleasing  picture  to  the  mind  of  the  governor.  He  saw  the 
necessity  of  collecting  these  men  together,  and  of  employ 
ing  them  actively  in  the  service  of  the  colony,  as  the  most 
effectual  mode  of  preventing  their  getting  within  the  con 
trol  of  Waally.  This  duty  was  confided  to  Bigelovv,  who 
was  sent  to  the  Reef  without  delay,  taking  with  him  all 
the  Kannakas  at  Whaling  Bight,  with  orders  to  put  them 
on  board  the  shipping  at  the  Reef — schooners,  sloops, 
lighters,  &c.,  of  which  there  were  now,  ordinarily,  some 
eight  or  ten  to  be  found  there — and  to  carry  them  all  to 
windward ;  using  the  inner  channels  of  the  group.  Here 
was  a  twenty-four  hours'  job,  and  one  that  would  not  only 
keep  everybody  quite  busy,  but  which  might  have  the  effect 
to  save  all  the  property  in  the  event  of  a  visit  to  the  Reef 
by  the  pirates.  Bigelow  was  to  call  every  Kannaka  he 
saw  to  his  assistance,  in  the  hope  of  thus  getting  most  of 
them  out  of  harm's  way. 

Notwithstanding  this  procedure,  which  denoted  a  wise 
distrust  of  these  Indian  allies,  the  governor  manifested  a 
certain  degree  of  confidence  towards  a  portion  of  them, 
that  was  probably  just  as  discreet  in  another  way.  A  part 
of  the  crew  of  every  vessel,  with  the  exception  of  those  that 
went  to  the  Peak,  was  composed  of  Kannakas;  and  no  less 
than  ten  of  them  were  habitually  employed  in  the  Anne, 
which  carried  two  whale-boats  for  emergencies.  None  of 
these  men  were  sent  away,  or  were  in  any  manner  taken 
from  their  customary  employments.  So  much  confidence 
had  the  governor  in  his  own  authority,  and  in  his  power  to 
influence  these  particular  individuals,  that  he  did  not  hesi- 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  405 

tate  about  keeping  them  near  himself,  and,  in  a  measure,  of 
entrusting  the  safety  of  his  person  to  their  care.  It  is  true, 
that  the  Kannakas  of  both  the  Anne  and  the  Martha  were 
a  sort  of  confidential  seamen,  having  now  been  employed 
in  the  colony  several  years,  and  got  a  taste  for  the  habits 
of  the  settlers. 

When  all  his  arrangements  were  made,  the  governor 
came  out  of  Whaling  Bight  in  the  Anne,  meeting  Betts  in 
the  Martha  off  South  Cape.  Both  vessels  then  stood  down 
along  the  shores  of  the  group,  keeping  a  bright  look-out  in 
the  direction  of  Rancocus  Island,  or  towards  the  southward 
and  westward.  Two  or  three  smaller  crafts  were  in  com 
pany,  each  under  the  direction  of  some  one  on  whom  reli 
ance  could  be  placed.  The  old  Neshamony  had  the  honour 
of  being  thus  employed,  among  others.  The  south-western 
angle  of  the  group  formed  a  long,  low  point,  or  cape  of 
rock,  making  a  very  tolerable  roadstead  on  its  north-west 
ern  side,  or  to  leeward.  This  cape  was  known  among  the 
colonists  by  the  name  of  Rancocus  Needle,  from  the  cir 
cumstance  that  it  pointed  with  mathematical  precision  to 
the  island  in  question.  Thus,  it  was  a  practice  with  the 
coasters  to  run  for  the  extremity  of  this  cape,  and  then  to 
stand  away  on  a  due  south-west  course,  certain  of  seeing 
the  mountains  for  which  they  were  steering  in  the  next  few 
hours.  Among  those  who  plied  to  and  fro  in  this  manner, 
were  many  who  had  no  very  accurate  notions  of  navigation  ; 
and,  to  them,  this  simple  process  was  found  to  be  quite 
useful. 

Off  Rancocus  Needle,  the  governor  had  appointed  a 
rendezvous  for  the  whole  of  his  little  fleet.  In  collecting 
these  vessels,  six  in  all,  including  four  boats,  his  object  had 
not  been  resistance  —  for  the  armaments  of  the  whole 
amounted  to  but  six  swivels,  together  with  a  few  muskets — 
but  vigilance.  He  was  confident  that  Waally  would  lead 
his  new  friends  up  towards  the  Western  Roads,  the  point 
where  he  had  made  all  his  own  attacks,  and  where  he  was 
most  acquainted ;  and  the  position  under  the  Needle  was 
the  best  station  for  observing  the  approach  of  the  strangers, 
coming  as  they  must,  if  they  came  at  all,  from  the  south 
west. 

The  Anne  was  the  first  craft  to  arrive  off  the  point  of 


406  THE  CRATER; 

the  Needle,  and  she  found  the  coast  clear.  As  yet,  n« 
signs  of  invaders  were  to  be  seen ;  and  the  Martha  being 
within  a  very  convenient  distance  to  the  eastward,  a  sig 
nal  was  made  to  Captain  Betts  to  stand  over  towards  the 
Peak,  and  have  a  search  in  that  quarter.  Should  the  stran 
gers  take  it  into  their  heads  to  beat  up  under  the  cliffs 
again,  and  thence  stretch  across  to  the  group,  it  would 
bring  them  in  with  the  land  to  windward  of  the  observing 
squadron,  and  give  them  an  advantage  the  governor  was 
very  far  from  wishing  them  to  obtain.  The  rest  of  the 
craft  came  down  to  the  place  of  rendezvous,  and  kept 
standing  off  and  on,  under  short  sail,  close  in  with  the 
rocks,  so  as  to  keep  in  the  smoothest  of  the  water.  Such 
was  the  state  of  things  when  the  sun  went  down  in  the 
ocean. 

All  night  the  little  fleet  of  the  colonists  remained  in  the 
same  uncertainty  as  to  the  movements  of  their  suspicious 
visitors.  About  twelve  the  Martha  came  round  the  Needle, 
and  reported  the  coast  clear  to  the  southward.  She  had 
been  quite  to  the  cove,  and  had  communicated  with  the 
chore.  Nothing  had  been  seen  of  the  ship  and  her  con 
sorts  since  the  governor  left,  nor  had  any  further  tidings 
been  brought  up  from  to  leeward,  since  the  arrival  of  Bige- 
low.  On  receiving  this  information,  the  governor  ordered 
his  command  to  run  off,  in  diverging  lines,  for  seven 
leagues  each,  and  then  to  wait  for  day.  This  was  accord 
ingly  done;  the  Anne  and  Martha,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
outstripping  the  others.  At  the  usual  hour  day  re-appeared, 
when  the  look-out  aloft,  on  board  the  Anne,  reported  the 
Martha  about  two  leagues  to  the  northward,  the  Nesha 
mony  about  as  far  to  the  southward,  though  a  league  far 
ther  to  windward.  The  other  craft  were  known  to  be  to 
the  northward  of  the  Martha,  but  could  not  be  seen.  As 
for  the  Neshamony,  she  was  coming  down  with  a  flowing 
sheet,  to  speak  the  governor. 

The  sun  had  fairly  risen,  when  the  Neshamony  came  down 
on  the  Anne's  weather-quarter,  both  craft  then  standing  to 
the  northward.  The  Neshamony  had  seen  nothing.  The 
governor  now  directed  her  commander  to  stand  directly 
down  towards  Rancocus  Island.  If  she  saw  nothing,  she 
Was  to  go  in  and  land,  in  order  to  get  the  news  from  the 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  407 

people  ashore.  Unless  the  information  obtained  in  this 
way  was  of  a  nature  that  demanded  a  different  course,  she 
was  to  beat  up  to  the  volcano,  reconnoitre  there,  then 
stand  across  to  the  cove,  and  go  in ;  whence  she  was  to 
sail  for  the  Reef,  unless  she  could  hear  of  the  governor  at 
some  other  point,  when  she  was  to  make  the  best  of  her 
way  to  him. 

The  Anne  now  made  sail  towards  the  Martha,  which 
sloop  was  standing  to  the  northward,  rather  edging  from 
the  group,  under  short  canvass.  No  land  was  in  sight, 
though  its  haze  could  be  discovered  all  along  the  eastern 
board,  where  the  group  was  known  to  lie ;  but  neither  the 
Peak,  nor  the  Volcano,  nor  Rancocus  heights  could  now 
be  seen  from  the  vessels.  About  ten  the  governor  spoke 
Captain  Betts,  to  ask  the  news.  The  Martha  had  seen 
nothing ;  and,  shortly  after,  the  three  boats  to  the  north 
ward  joined,  and  made  the  same  report.  Nothing  had  been 
seen  of  the  strangers,  who  seemed,  most  unaccountably,  to 
be  suddenly  lost ! 

This  uncertainty  rendered  all  the  more  reflecting  por 
tion  of  the  colonists  exceedingly  uneasy.  Should  the 
pirates  get  into  the  group  by  either  of  its  weather  channels, 
they  would  not  only  find  all  the  property  and  vessels  that 
had  been  taken  in  that  direction,  at  their  mercy,  but  they 
would  assail  the  settlements  in  their  weakest  parts,  render 
succour  more  difficult,  and  put  themselves  in  a  position 
whence  it  would  be  easiest  to  approach  or  to  avoid  their 
foes.  Any  one  understanding  the  place,  its  facilities  for 
attacking,  or  its  defences,  would  naturally  endeavour  to 
enter  the  group  as  well  to  windward  as  possible;  but 
Waally  had  never  attempted  anything  of  the  sort;  and,  as 
he  knew  little  of  the  inner  passages,  it  was  not  probable 
he  had  thought  of  suggesting  a  course  different  from  his 
own  to  his  new  friends.  The  very  circumstance  that  he 
had  always  approached  by  the  same  route,  was  against  it ; 
for,  if  his  sagacity  had  not  pointed  out  a  preferable  course 
for  himself,  it  was  not  to  be  expected  it  would  do  it  for 
others.  Still,  it  was  not  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  prac 
tised  seamen  might  see  the  advantages  which  the  savage 
had  overlooked,  and  a  very  serious  apprehension  arose  in 
the  minds  of  the  governor  and  Betts,  in  particular,  touching 


408  THE   CRATER; 

this  point.  All  that  could  be  done,  however,  was  to  des* 
patch  two  of  the  boats,  with  orders  to  enter  the  group  by 
the  northern  road,  and  proceed  as  far  as  the  Reef.  The 
third  boat  was  left  to  cruise  off  the  Needle,  in  order  to 
communicate  with  anything  that  should  go  to  that  place  of 
rendezvous  with  a  report,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  keep  a 
look-out  for  the  pirates.  With  the  person  in  charge  of  this 
boat,  was  left  the  course  to  be  steered  by  those  who  were 
to  search  for  the  governor,  as  they  arrived  off  the  Needle, 
from  time  to  time. 

The  Anne  and  Martha  bore  up,  in  company,  as  soon  as 
these  arrangements  were  completed,  it  being  the  plan  now 
to  go  and  look  for  the  strangers.  Once  in  view,  the  go 
vernor  determined  not  to  lose  sight  of  the  pirates,  again, 
but  to  remain  so  near  them,  as  to  make  sure  of  knowing 
what  they  were  about.  In  such  cases,  a  close  look-out 
should  always  be  kept*  on  the  enemy,  since  an  advantage 
in  time  is  gained  by  so  doing,  as  well  as  a  great  deal  of 
uncertainty  and  indecision  avoided. 

For  seven  hours  the  Anne  and  Martha  stood  towards 
Rancocus  Island,  running  off  about  two  leagues  from  each 
other,  thereby  '  spreading  a  clew,'  as  sailors  call  it,  that 
would  command  the  view  of  a  good  bit  of  water.  The 
tops  of  the  mountains  were  soon  seen,  and  by  the  end  of 
the  time  mentioned,  most  of  the  lower  land  became  visible. 
Nevertheless,  the  strangers  did  not  come  in  sight.  Greatly 
at  a  loss  how  to  proceed,  the  governor  now  sent  the  Martha 
down  for  information,  with  orders  for  her  to  beat  up  to  the 
Needle,  as  soon  as  she  could,  the  Anne  intending  to  ren 
dezvous  there,  next  morning,  agreeably  to  previous  ar 
rangements.  As  the  Martha  went  off  before  the  wind,  the 
Anne  hauled  up  sharp  towards  the  Peak,  under  the  im 
pression  that  something  might  have  been  seen  of  the 
strangers  from  the  high  land  there.  About  four  in  the 
morning  the  Anne  went  into  the  cove,  and  the  governor 
ascended  to  the  plain  to  have  an  interview  with  Heaton. 
He  found  everything  tranquil  in  that  quarter.  Nothing 
had  been  seen  of  the  strange  squadron,  since  it  went  out 
of  sight,  under  the  volcano;  nor  had  even  the  Neshamony 
come  in.  The  governor's  arrival  was  soon  known,  early  as 
it  was,  and  he  had  visits  from  half  the  women  on  the  island, 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  409 

to  inquire  after  their  absent  husbands.  Each  wife  was  told 
all  the  governor  knew,  and  this  short  intercourse  relieved 
the  minds  of  a  great  many. 

At  eight,  the  Anne  sailed  again,  and  at  ten  she  had  the 
Needle  in  sight,  with  three  boats  off  it,  on  the  look-out. 
Here,  then,  were  tidings  at  last;  but,  the  impatience  of  the 
governor  was  restrained,  in  order  to  make  out  the  character 
of  a  sail  that  had  been  seen  coming  down  through  the 
straits,  under  a  cloud  of  canvas.  In  a  short  time,  this  ves 
sel  was  made  out  to  be  the  Abraham,  and  the  Anne  hauled 
up  to  get  her  news.  The  two  schooners  spoke  each  other 
about  twelve  o'clock,  but  the  Abraham  had  no  intelligence 
to  impart.  She  had  been  sent,  or  rather  carried  by  Bige- 
low,  out  by  the  eastern  passage,  and  had  stood  along  the 
whole  of  the  weather-side  of  the  group,  to  give  notice  to 
the  whalers  where  to  go ;  and  she  had  notified  the  two 
brigs  to  go  in  to-windward,  and  to  remain  in  Weather  Bay, 
where  all  the  rest  of  the  dull  crafts  had  been  taken  for 
safety ;  and  then  had  come  to-leeward  to  look  for  the  go 
vernor.  As  the  Abraham  was  barely  a  respectable  sailer, 
it  was  not  deemed  prudent  to  take  her  too  near  the  strangers ; 
but,  she  might  see  how  matters  were  situated  to  the  east 
ward.  By  keeping  on  the  weather-coast,  and  so  near  the 
land  as  not  to  be  cut  off  from  it,  she  would  be  of  particular 
service ;  since  no  enemy  could  approach  in  that  quarter, 
without  being  seen ;  and  Bigelow's  familiarity  with  the 
channels  would  enable  him,  not  only  to  save  his  schooner 
by  running  in,  but  would  put  it  in  his  power  to  give  notice 
throughout  the  whole  group,  of  the  position  and  apparent 
intentions  of  the  strangers.  The  Abraham,  accordingly, 
hauled  by  the  wind,  to  beat  back  to  her  station,  while  the 
Anne  kept  off  for  the  Needle. 

At  the  rendezvous,  the  governor  found  most  of  his  craft 
waiting  for  him.  The  Neshamony  was  still  behind ;  but 
all  the  rest  had  executed  their  orders,  and  were  standing 
off  and  on,  near  the  cape,  ready  to  report.  Nothing  had 
been  seen  of  the  strangers !  It  was  certain  they  had  not 
approached  the  group,  for  two  of  the  boats  had  just  come 
out  of  it,  having  left  the  colonists  busy  with  the  prepara 
tions  for  defence,  but  totally  undisturbed  in  other  respects. 
This  information  gave  the  governor  increased  uneasiness. 


410  THE  CRATER; 

His  hope  of  hearing  from  the  pirates,  in  time  to  be  ready 
to  meet  them,  now  depended  on  his  reports  from  to  lee 
ward.  The  Neshamony  ought  soon  to  be  in  ;  nor  could  it 
be  long  before  the  Martha  would  return.  The  great  source 
of  apprehension  now  came  from  a  suspicion  that  some  of 
the  Kannakas  might  be  acting  as  pirates,  along  with  Waally. 
For  Waally  himself  no  great  distrust  was  felt,  since  he 
had  never  been  allowed  to  see  much  of  the  channels  of 
the  group ;  but  it  was  very  different  with  the  sea-going  Kan 
nakas,  who  had  been  employed  by  the  colonists.  Some  of 
these  men  were  familiar  with  all  the  windings  and  turnings 
of  the  channels,  knew  how  much  water  could  be  taken 
through  a  passage,  and,  though  not  absolutely  safe  pilots, 
perhaps,  were  men  who  might  enable  skilful  seamen  to 
handle  their  vessels  with  tolerable  security  within  the 
islands.  Should  it  turn  out  that  one  or  two  of  these  fel 
lows  had  undertaken  to  carry  the  strangers  up  to  wind 
ward,  and  to  take  them  into  one  of  the  passages  in  that 
quarter  of  the  group,  they  might  be  down  upon  the  differ 
ent  fortified  points  before  they  were  expected,  and  sweep 
all  before  them.  It  is  true,  this  danger  had  been  in  a  mea 
sure  foreseen,  and  persons  had  been  sent  to  look  out  for  it ; 
but  it  never  had  appeared  so  formidable  to  the  governor,  as 
now  that  he  found  himself  completely  at  fault  where  to 
look  for  his  enemy.  At  length,  a  prospect  of  fresh  reports 
appeared.  The  Neshamony  was  seen  in  the  southern 
board,  standing  across  from  the  Peak ;  and  about  the  same 
time,  the  Martha  was  made  out  in  the  south-western,  beat 
ing  up  from  Rancocus  Island  direct.  As  the  first  had 
been  ordered  to  land,  and  had  also  been  round  by  the  vol 
cano,  the  Anne  hauled  up  for  her,  the  governor  being  im 
patient  to  get  her  tidings  first.  In  half  an  hour,  the  two 
vessels  were  alongside  of  each  other.  But  the  Neshamony 
had  very  little  that  was  new  to  tell !  The  pirates  had  re 
mained  on  the  island  but  a  short  time  after  Bigelow  and 
his  companions  got  away,  doing  all  the  damage  they  could, 
however,  in  that  brief  space.  When  they  left,  it  was  night, 
and  nothing  very  certain  could  be  told  of  their  movements. 
When  last  seen,  however,  they  were  on  a  wind,  and  head 
ing  to  the  southward,,  a  little  westerly ;  which  looked  like 
beating  up  towards  the  volcano,  the  trades  now  blowing 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  411 

due  south-east.  But  the  Neshamony  had  been  quite  round 
the  volcano,  without  obtaining  a  sight  of  the  strangers. 
Thence  she  proceeded  to  the  Peak,  where  she  arrived 
only  a  few  hours  after  the  governor  had  sailed,  going  into 
the  cove  and  finding  all  quiet.  Of  course,  the  Martha 
could  have  no  more  to  say  than  this,  if  as  much ;  and  the 
governor  was  once  more  left  to  the  pain  of  deep  suspense. 
As  was  expected,  when  Betts  joined,  he  had  nothing  at  all 
to  tell.  He  had  been  ashore  at  Rancocus  Point,  heard  the 
complaints  of  the  people  touching  their  losses,  but  had 
obtained  no  other  tidings  of  the  wrong-doers.  Unwilling 
to  lose  time,  he  staid  but  an  hour,  and  had  been  beating 
back  to  the  rendezvous  the  rest  of  the  period  of  his  ab 
sence.  Was  it  possible  that  the  strangers  had  gone  back 
to  Betto's  group,  satisfied  with  the  trifling  injuries  they 
had  inflicted?  This  could  hardly  be;  yet  it  was  not  easy 
to  say  where  else  they  had  been.  After  a  consultation,  it 
was  decided  that  the  Martha  should  stand  over  in  that  di 
rection,  in  the  hope  that  she  might  pick  up  some  intelli 
gence,  by  meeting  with  fishing  canoes  that  often  came 
out  to  a  large  cluster  of  rocks,  that  lay  several  leagues  to 
windward  of  the  territories  of  Ooroony  and  Waally.  Cap 
tain  Betts  had  taken  his  leave  of  the  governor,  and  had 
actually  got  on  board  his  own  vessel,  in  order  to  make  sail, 
when  a  signal  was  seen  flying  on  board  one  of  the  boats 
that  was  kept  cruising  well  out  in  the  straits,  intimating 
that  strange  vessels  were  seen  to  windward.  This  induced 
the  governor  to  recall  the  Martha,  and  the  whole  of  the 
look-out  vessels  stood  off  into  the  straits. 

In  less  than  an  hour,  all  doubts  were  removed.  There 
were  the  strangers,  sure  enough,  and  what  was  more,  there 
was  the  Abraham  ahead  of  them,  pushing  for  Cape  South 
passage,  might  and  main ;  for  the  strangers  were  on  her 
heels,  going  four  feet  to  her  three.  It  appeared,  after 
wards,  that  the  pirates,  on  quitting  Rancocus  Island,  had 
stood  off  to  the  southward,  until  they  reached  to  windward 
of  the  volcano,  passing  however  a  good  bit  to  leeward  of 
the  island,  on  their  first  stretch,  when,  finding  the  Peak 
just  dipping,  they  tacked  to  the  northward  and  westward, 
and  stood  off  towards  the  ordinary  whaling-ground  of  the 
colony,  over  which  they  swept  in  the  expectation  of  cap- 


412  THE   CRATER; 

turing  the  brigs.  The  pirates  had  no  occasion  for  oil, 
which  they  probably  would  have  destroyed  in  pure  wan 
tonness,  but  they  were  much  in  want  of  naval  stores,  cord 
age  in  particular,  and  the  whaling  gear  of  the  two  brigs 
would  have  been  very  acceptable  to  them.  While  running 
in  for  the  group,  after  an  unsuccessful  search,  they  made 
the  Abraham,  and  gave  chase.  That  schooner  steered  for 
the  straits,  in  the  hope  of  finding  the  governor ;  but  was  so 
hard  pressed  by  her  pursuers,  as  to  be  glad  to  edge  in  for 
Cape  South  roads,  intending  to  enter  the  group,  and  run 
for  the  Reef,  if  she  could  do  no  better. 

Luckily,  the  discovery  of  the  look-out  boat  prevented 
the  execution  of  the  Abraham's  project,  which  would  have 
led  the  pirates  directly  up  to  the  capital.  But,  no  sooner 
did  the  governor  see  how  things  were  situated,  than  he 
boldly  luffed  up  towards  the  strangers,  intending  to  divert 
them  from  the  chase  of  the  Abraham ;  or,  at  least,  to  sepa 
rate  them,  in  chase  of  himself.  In  this  design  he  was 
handsomely  seconded  by  Betts,  in  the  Martha,  who  hauled 
his  wind  in  the  wake  of  the  Anne,  and  carried  everything 
that  would  draw,  in  order  to  keep  his  station.  This  deci 
sion  and  show  of  spirit  had  its  effect.  The  two  brigs, 
which  were  most  to  the  southward,  altered  their  course, 
and  edged  away  for  the  Anne  and  Martha,  leaving  the  ship 
to  follow  the  Abraham  alone.  The  governor  was  greatly 
rejoiced  at  this,  for  he  had  a  notion  a  vessel  as  large  as  the 
strange  ship  would  hesitate  about  entering  the  narrow 
waters,  on  account  of  her  draught;  she  being  much  larger 
than  any  craft  that  had  ever  been  in  before,  as  the  Kanna- 
kas  must  know,  and  would  not  fail  to  report  to  the  pirates. 
The  governor  supposed  this  ship  to  be  a  vessel  of  between 
six  and  seven  hundred  tons  measurement.  Her  armament 
appeared  to  be  twelve  guns  of  a  side,  below,  and  some 
eight  or  ten  guns  on  her  quarter-deck  and  forecastle. 
This  was  a  formidable  craft  in  those  days,  making  what 
was  called  in  the  English  service,  an  eight-and-twenty  gun 
frigate,  a  class  of  cruisers  that  were  then  found  to  be  very 
useful.  It  is  true,  that  the  first  class  modern  sloop-of-war 
would  blow  one  of  those  little  frigates  out  of  water,  being 
several  hundred  tons  larger,  with  armaments,  crews  and 
gpars  in  proportion ;  but  an  eight-and-twenty  gun  frigat 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  413 

offered  a  very  formidable  force  to  a  community  like  that 
of  the  crater,  and  no  one  knew  it  better  than  the  governor. 

The  three  strangers  all  sailed  like  witches.  It  was  well 
for  the  Abraham  that  she  had  a  port  so  close  under  her 
lee,  or  the  ship  would  have  had  her,  beyond  the  smallest 
doubt.  As  it  was  she  caught  it,  as  she  rounded  the  cape, 
as  close  in  as  she  could  go,  the  frigate  letting  slip  at  her 
the  whole  of  her  starboard  broadside,  which  cut  away  the 
schooner's  gaff,  jib-stay,  and  main-topmast,  besides  killing 
a  Kannaka,  who  was  in  the  main-cross-trees  at  the  time. 
This  last  occurrence  turned  out  to  be  fortunate,  in  the 
main,  however,  since  it  induced  all  the  Kannakas  to  be 
lieve  that  the  strangers  were  their  enemies,  in  particular ; 
else  why  kill  one  of  their  number,  when  there  were  just 
as  many  colonists  as  Kannakas  to  shoot  at ! 

As  the  governor  expected,  the  ship  did  not  venture  to 
follow  the  Abraham  in.  That  particular  passage,  in  fact, 
was  utterly  unknown  to  Waally,  and  those  with  him,  and 
he  could  not  give  such  an  account  of  it  as  would  encou 
rage  the  admiral  to  stand  on.  Determined  not  to  lose 
time  unnecessarily,  the  latter  hauled  short  off  shore,  and 
made  sail  in  chase  of  the  Anne  and  Martha,  which,  by 
this  time,  were  about  mid-channel,  heading  across  to  the 
Peak.  It  was  not  the  wish  of  the  governor,  however,  to 
lead  the  strangers  any  nearer  to  the  cove  than  was  neces 
sary,  and,  no  sooner  did  he  see  the  Abraham  well  within 
the  islands,  her  sails  concealed  by  the  trees,  of  which 
there  was  now  a  little  forest  on  this  part  of  the  coast,  and 
the  ship  drawing  well  off  the  land  in  hot  pursuit  of  him 
self,  than  he  kept  away  in  the  direction  of  Rancocus  Isl 
and,  bringing  the  wind  on  his  larboard  quarter.  The 
strangers  followed,  and  in  half  an  hour  they  were  all  so 
far  to  leeward  of  Cape  South,  as  to  remove  any  apprehen 
sion  of  their  going  in  there  very  soon. 

Thus  far,  the  plan  of  the  governor  had  succeeded  to 
admiration.  He  had  his  enemies  in  plain  sight,  within  a 
league  of  him,  and  in  chase  of  his  two  fastest  craft.  The 
best  sailing  of  the  Anne  and  Martha  was  on  a  wind,  and, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  they  could  do  better,  comparatively, 
in  smooth  water,  than  larger  craft.  No  sooner,  therefore, 
had  he  got  his  pursuers  far  enough  off  the  land,  and  far 


414  THE  CRATER; 

enough  to  leeward,  than  the  governor  wore,  or  jibed  would 
be  the  better  word,  running  off  northwest,  with  the  wind 
on  his  starboard  quarter.  This  gave  the  strangers  a  little 
the  advantage,  in  one  sense,  though  they  lost  it  in  another. 
It  brought  them  on  his  weather-beam ;  pretty  well  forward 
of  it,  too;  but  the  Needle  was  directly  ahead  of  the 
schooner  and  sloop,  and  the  governor  foresaw  that  his 
pursuers  would  have  to  keep  off  to  double  that,  which  he 
was  reasonably  certain  of  reaching  first. 

Everything  turned  out  as  the  governor  anticipated.  The 
pirates  had  near  a  league  of  water  more  to  pass  over,  be 
fore  they  could  double  the  Needle,  than  the  Anne  and  the 
Martha  had ;  and,  though  those  two  crafts  were  obliged  to 
haul  up  close  to  the  rocks,  under  a  distant  fire  from  all 
three  of  their  pursuers,  no  harm  was  done,  and  they  were 
soon  covered  by  the  land,  and  were  close-hauled  in  smooth 
water,  to  leeward  of  the  group.  Twenty  minutes  later, 
the  strangers  came  round  the  cape,  also,  bearing  up  sharp, 
and  following  their  chase.  This  was  placing  the  enemy 
just  where  the  colonists  could  have  wished.  They  were 
now  to-leeward  of  every  point  in  the  settlements,  looking 
up  towards  the  roads,  which  opened  on  the  western  pas 
sage,  or  that  best  known  to  Waally,  and  which  he  would 
be  most  likely  to  enter,  should  he  attempt  to  pilot  the 
strangers  in.  This  was  getting  the  invaders  precisely 
where  the  governor  wished  them  to  be,  if  they  were  to 
attack  him  at  all.  They  could  not  reach  the  Reef  in  less 
than  twenty-four  hours,  with  their  knowledge  of  the  chan 
nel  ;  would  have  to  approach  it  in  face  of  the  heaviest  and 
strongest  batteries,  those  provided  for  Waally;  and,  if  suc 
cessful  in  reaching  the  inner  harbour,  would  enter  it  under 
the  fire  of  the  long  twelves  mounted  on  the  crater,  which 
was,  rightly  enough,  deemed  to  be  the  citadel  of  the  entire 
colony,  unless,  indeed,  the  Peak  might  better  deserve  that 
name. 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  415 


CHAPTER  XXYIII. 

"  It  scares  the  sea-birds  from  their  nests  ; 

They*dart  and  wheel  with  deafening  screams ; 
Now  dark — and  now  their  wings  and  breasts 

Flash  back  amid  disastrous  gleams. 
O,  sin  !  what  hast  thou  done  on  this  fair  earth  ? 
The  world,  O  man  !  is  wailing  o'er  thy  birth." 

DANA. 

IT  was  the  policy  of  the  colonists  to  lead  their  pursuers 
directly  up  to  the  Western  Roads.  On  the  small  island, 
under  which  vessels  were  accustomed  to  anchor,  was  a 
dwelling  or  two,  and  a  battery  of  two  guns — nine-pounders. 
These  guns  were  to  command  the  anchorage.  The  island 
lay  directly  in  front  of  the  mouth  of  the  passage,  making  a 
very  beautiful  harbour  within  it ;  though  the  water  was  so 
smooth  in  the  roads,  and  the  last  were  so  much  the  most 
convenient  for  getting  under-way  in,  that  this  more  shel 
tered  haven  was  very  little  used.  On  the  present  occasion, 
however,  all  the  colony  craft  beat  up  past  the  island,  and 
anchored  inside  of  it.  The  crews  were  then  landed,  and 
they  repaired  to  the  battery,  which  they  found  ready  for 
service  in  consequence  of  orders  previously  sent. 

Here,  then,  was  the  point  where  hostilities  would  be 
likely  to  commence,  should  hostilities  commence  at  all. 
One  of  the  boats  was  sent  across  to  the  nearest  island  in 
land,  where  a  messenger  was  landed,  with  directions  to 
carry  a  letter  to  Pennock,  at  the  Reef.  This  messenger 
was  compelled  to  walk  about  six  miles,  the  whole  distance 
in  a  grove  of  young  palms  arid  bread-fruit  trees;  great 
pains  having  been  taken  to  cultivate  both  of  these  plants 
throughout  the  group,  in  spots  favourable  to  their  growth. 
After  getting  through  the  grove,  the  path  came  out  on  a 
plantation,  where  a  horse  was  kept  for  this  especial  object; 
and  here  the  man  mounted  and  galloped  off  to  the  Reef, 
soon  finding  himself  amid  a  line  of  some  of  the  most  flour 
ishing  plantations  in  the  colony.  Fortunately,  however,  as 


416  THE  CRATER; 

things  then  threatened,  these  plantations  were  not  on  the 
main  channel,  but  stood  along  the  margin  of  a  passage 
which  was  deep  enough  to  receive  any  craft  that  floated, 
but  which  was  a  cul-de-sac,  that  could  be  entered  only  from 
the  eastward.  Along  the  margin  of  the  ship-channel,  there 
was  not  yet  soil  of  the  right  quality  for  cultivation,  though 
it  was  slowly  forming,  as  the  sands  that  l^y  thick  on  the 
adjacent  rocks  received  other  substances  by  exposure  to 
the  atmosphere. 

The  Anne  and  her  consorts  had  been  anchored  about  an 
hour,  when  the  strangers  hove-to  in  the  roads,  distant  about 
half  a  mile  from  the  battery.  Here  they  all  hoisted  white 
flags,  as  if  desirous  of  having  a  parley.  The  governor  did 
not  well  know  how  to  act.  He  could  not  tell  whether  or 
not  it  would  do  to  trust  such  men ;  and  he  as  little  liked  to 
place  Betts,  or  any  other  confidential  friend,  in  their  power, 
as  he  did  to  place  himself  there.  Nevertheless,  prudence 
required  that  some  notice  should  be  taken  of  the  flag  of 
truce ;  and  he  determined  to  go  off  a  short  distance  from 
the  shore  in  one  of  his  own  boats,  and  hoist  a  white  flag, 
which  would  be  as  much  as  to  say  that  he  was  waiting 
there  to  receive  any  communication  that  the  strangers  might 
chose  to  send  him. 

It  was  not  long  after  the  governor's  boat  had  reached  her 
station,  which  was  fairly  within  the  short  range  of  the  two 
guns  in  the  battery,  ere  a  boat  shoved  off  from  the  ship, 
showing  the  white  flag,  too.  In  a  few  minutes,  the  two 
boats  were  within  the  lengths  of  each  other's  oars,  riding 
peacefully  side  by  side. 

On  board  the  stranger's  boat,  in  addition  to  the  six  men 
who  were  at  the  oars,  were  three  persons  in  the  stern- 
sheets.  One  of  these  men,  as  was  afterwards  ascertained, 
was  the  admiral  himself;  a  second  was  an  interpreter,  who 
spoke  English  with  a  foreign  accent,  but  otherwise  per 
fectly  well ;  and  the  third  was  no  other  than  Waally  !  The 
governor  thought  a  fierce  satisfaction  was  gleaming  in  the 
countenance  of  the  savage  when  they  met,  though  the  lat 
ter  said  nothing.  The  interpreter  opened  the  communi 
cations. 

"  Is  any  one  in  that  boat,"  demanded  this  person,  "  who 
is  empowered  to  speak  for  the  authorities  ashore  ?" 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  417 

"  There  is,"  answered  the  governor,  who  did  not  deem 
itt  wise,  nevertheless,  exactly  to  proclaim  his  rank.  "  I 
have  full  powers,  being  directly  authorized  by  the  chief- 
magistrate  of  this  colony." 

"  To  what  nation  does  your  colony  belong?" 

This  was  an  awkward  question,  and  one  that  had  not 
been  at  all  anticipated,  and  which  the  governor  was  not 
fully  prepared  to  answer. 

"  Before  interrogatories  are  thus  put,  it  might  be  as  well 
for  me  to  know  by  what  authority  I  am  questioned  at  all," 
returned  Mr.  Woolston.  "  What  are  the  vessels  which 
have  anchored  in  our  waters,  and  under  what  flag  do  they 
sail?" 

"  A  man-of-war  never  answers  a  hail,  unless  it  comes 
from  another  man-of-war,"  answered  the  interpreter, 
smiling. 

"  Do  you,  then,  claim  to  be  vessels  of  war?" 

"  If  compelled  to  use  our  force,  you  will  find  us  so. 
We  have  not  come  here  to  answer  questions,  however,  but 
to  ask  them.  Does  your  colony  claim  to  belong  to  any 
particular  nation,  or  not  ?" 

"  We  are  all  natives  of  the  United  States  of  America, 
and  our  vessels  sail  under  her  flag." 

"  The  United  States  of  America !"  repeated  the  inter 
preter,  with  an  ill-concealed  expression  of  contempt. 
"  There  is  good  picking  among  the  vessels  of  that  nation, 
as  the  great  European  belligerents  well  know ;  and  while 
so  many  are  profiting  by  it,  we  may  as  well  come  in  for  our 
share." 

It  may  be  necessary  to  remind  a  portion  of  our  readers, 
that  this  dialogue  occurred  more  than  forty  years  ago,  and 
long  before  the  republic  sent  out  its  fleets  and  armies  to 
conquer  adjacent  states;  when,  indeed,  it  had  scarce  a 
fleet  and  army  to  protect  its  own  coasts  and  frontiers  from 
insults  and  depredations.  It  is  said  that  when  the  late 
Emperor  of  Austria,  the  good  and  kind-hearted  Francis  II., 
was  shown  the  ruins  of  the  little  castle  of  Habsburg, 
which  is  still  to  be  seen  crowning  a  low  height,  in  the 
canton  of  Aarraw,  Switzerland,  he  observed,  "  I  now  see 
that  we  have  not  always  been  a  great  family."  The  go 
vernor  cared  very  little  for  the  fling  at  his  native  land,  but 


418  THE   CRATER; 

he  did  not  relish  the  sneer,  as  it  indicated  the  treatment 
likely  to  be  bestowed  on  his  adopted  country.  Still,  the 
case  was  not  to  be  remedied  except  by  the  use  of  the  means 
already  provided,  should  his  visitors  see  fit  to  resort  to 
force. 

A  desultory  conversation  now  ensued,  in  which  the 
strangers  pretty  plainly  let  their  designs  be  seen.  In  the 
first  place  they  demanded  a  surrender  of  all  the  craft  be 
longing  to  the  colony,  big  and  little,  together  with  all  the 
naval  stores.  This  condition  complied  with,  the  strangers 
intimated  that  it  was  possible  their  conquests  would  not  be 
pushed  much  further.  Of  provisions,  they  stood  in  need 
of  pork,  and  they  understood  that  the  colony  had  hogs 
without  number.  If  they  would  bring  down  to  the  island 
a  hundred  fat  hogs,  with  barrels  and  salt,  within  twenty- 
four  hours,  it  was  probable,  however,  no  further  demand 
for  provisions  would  be  made.  They  had  obtained  fifty 
barrels  of  very  excellent  flour  at  Rancocus  Island,  and 
could  not  conveniently  stow  more  than  that  number,  in 
addition  to  the  demanded  hundred  barrels  of  pork.  The 
admiral  also  required  that  hostages  should  be  sent  on  board 
his  ship,  and  that  he  should  be  provided  with  proper  pilots, 
in  order  that  he,  and  a  party  of  suitable  size,  might  take 
the  Anne  and  the  Martha,  and  go  up  to  the  town,  which 
he  understood  lay  some  twenty  or  thirty  miles  within  the 
group.  Failing  of  an  acquiescence  in  these  terms,  war, 
and  war  of  the  most  ruthless  character,  was  to  be  imme 
diately  proclaimed.  All  attempts  to  obtain  an  announce 
ment  of  any  national  character,  on  the  part  of  the  strangers, 
was  evaded ;  though,  from  the  appearance  of  everything 
he  saw,  the  governor  could  not  now  have  the  smallest 
doubt  that  he  had  to  do  with  pirates. 

After  getting  all  out  of  the  strangers  that  he  could,  and 
it  was  but  little  at  the  best,  the  governor  quietly,  but  stea 
dily  refused  to  accede  to  any  one  of  the  demands,  and  put 
the  issue  on  the  appeal  to  force.  The  strangers  were  ob 
viously  disappointed  at  this  answer,  for  the  thoughtful, 
simple  manner  of  Mark  Woolston  had  misled  them,  and 
they  had  actually  flattered  themselves  with  obtaining  all 
they  wanted  without  a  struggle.  At  first,  the  anger  of  the 
admiral  threatened  some  treacherous  violence  on  the  spot, 


•OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  419 

but  the  crews  of  the  two  boats  were  so  nearly  equal,  that 
prudence,  if  not  good  faith,  admonished  him  of  the  neces 
sity  of  respecting  the  truce.  The  parties  separated,  how 
ever,  with  denunciations,  nay  maledictions,  on  the  part  of 
the  strangers,  the  colonists  remaining  quiet  in  demeanor, 
but  firm. 

The  time  taken  for  the  two  boats  to  return  to  their  re 
spective  points  of  departure  was  but  short ;  and  scarcely 
was  that  of  the  stranger  arrived  alongside  of  its  vessel,  ere 
the  ship  fired  a  gun.  This  was  the  signal  of  war,  the  shot 
of  that  first  gun  falling  directly  in  the  battery,  where  it 
took  off  the  hand  of  a  Kannaka,  besides  doing  some  other 
damage.  This  was  not  a  very  favourable  omen,  but  the 
governor  encouraged  his  people,  and  to  work  both  sides 
went,  trying  who  could  do  the  other  the  most  harm.  The 
cannonading  was  lively  and  well  sustained,  though  it  was 
not  like  one  of  the  present  time,  when  shot  are  hollow,  and 
a  gun  is  chambered  and,  not  unfrequently,  has  a  muzzle 
almost  as  large  as  the  open  end  of  a  flour-barrel,  and  a 
breech  as  big  as  a  hogshead.  At  the  commencement  of 
this  century  a  long  twelve-pounder  was  considered  a  smart 
piece,  and  was  thought  very  capable  of  doing  a  good  deal 
of  mischief.  The  main  battery  of  the  ship  was  composed 
of  guns  of  that  description,  while  one  of  the  brigs  carried 
eight  nines,  and  the  other  fourteen  sixes.  As  the  ship 
mounted  altogether  thirty,  if  not  thirty-two,  guns,  this  left 
the  governor  to  contend  with  batteries  that  had  in  them  at 
least  twenty-six  pieces,  as  opposed  to  his  own  two.  A 
couple  of  lively  guns,  nevertheless,  well-served  and  properly 
mounted,  behind  good  earthen  banks,  are  quite  equal  to 
several  times  their  number  on  board  ship.  Notwithstand 
ing  the  success  of  the  first  shot  of  the  pirates,  this  truth 
soon  became  sufficiently  apparent,  and  the  vessels  found 
themselves  getting  the  worst  of  it.  The  governor,  him 
self,  or  Captain  Betts  pointed  every  gun  that  was  fired  in 
the  battery,  and  they  seldom  failed  to  make  their  marks  on 
the  hulls  of  .the  enemy.  On  the  other  hand,  the  shot  of  the 
shipping  was  either  buried  in  the  mounds  of  the  battery, 
or  passed  over  its  low  parapets.  Not  a  man  was  hurt 
ashore,  at  the  end  of  an  hour's  struggle,  with  the  excep- 


420  THE   CRATER; 

tion  of  the  Kannaka  first  wounded,  while  seven  of  the 
pirates  were  actually  killed,  and  near  twenty  wounded. 

Had  the  combat  continued  in  the  manner  in  which  it 
was  commenced,  the  result  would  have  been  a  speedy  and 
signal  triumph  in  favour  of  the  colony.  But,  by  this  time, 
the  pirate  admiral  became  convinced  that  he  had  gone  the 
wrong  way  to  work,  and  that  he  must  have  recourse  to 
some  management,  in  order  to  prevail  against  such  stub 
born  foes.  Neither  of  the  vessels  was  anchored,  but  all 
kept  under  way,  manoeuvring  about  in  front  of  the  battery, 
but  one  brig  hauled  out  of  the  line  to  the  northward,  arid 
making  a  stretch  or  two  clear  of  the  line  of  fire,  she  came 
down  on  the  north  end  of  the  battery,  in  a  position  to  rake 
it.  Now,  this  battery  had  been  constructed  for  plain, 
straightforward  cannonading  in  front,  with  no  embrasures 
to  command  the  roads  on  either  flank.  Curtains  of  earth 
had  been  thrown  up  on  the  flanks,  to  protect  the  men,  it 
is  true,  but  this  passive  sort  of  resistance  could  do  very 
little  good  in  a  protracted  contest.  While  this  particular 
brig  was  gaining  that  favourable  position,  the  ship  and  the 
other  brig  fell  off  to  leeward,  and  were  soon  at  so  long  a 
shot,  as  to  be  out  of  harm's  way.  This  was  throwing  the 
battery  entirely  out  of  the  combat,  as  to  anything  aggres 
sive,  and  compelled  a  prompt  decision  on  the  part  of  the 
colonists.  No  sooner  did  the  nearest  brig  open  her  fire, 
and  that  within  short  canister  range,  than  the  ship  and  her 
consort  hauled  in  again  on  the  southern  flank  of  the  bat 
tery,  the  smallest  vessel  leading,  and  feeling  her  way  with 
the  lead.  Perceiving  the  utter  uselessness  of  remaining, 
and  the  great  danger  he  ran  of  being  cut  off,  the  governor 
now  commenced  a  retreat  to  his  boats.  This  movement 
was  not  without  danger,  one  colonist  being  killed  in  effect 
ing  it,  and  two  more  of  the  Kannakas  wounded.  It  suc 
ceeded,  notwithstanding,  and  the  whole  party  got  off  to 
the  Anne  and  Martha. 

This  retreat,  of  course,  left  the  island  and  the  battery 
at  the  mercy  of  the  pirates.  The  latter  landed,  set  fire  to 
the  buildings,  blew  up  the  magazine,  dismounted  the  guns, 
and  did  all  the  other  damage  to  the  place  that  could  be 
accomplished  in  the  course  of  a  short  visit.  They  then 
went  on  board  their  vessels,  again,  and  began  to  beat  up 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  421 

into  the  Western  Passage,  following  the  colonists  who  pre 
ceded  them,  keeping  just  out  of  gun-shot. 

The  Western  Passage  was  somewhat  crooked,  and  dif 
ferent  reaches  were  of  very  frequent  occurrence.  This 
sometimes  aided  a  vessel  in  ascending,  or  going  to  wind 
ward,  and  sometimes  offered  obstacles.  As  there  were 
many  other  passages,  so  many  false  channels,  some  of 
which  were  culs-de-sacs,  it  was  quite  possible  for  one  igno 
rant  of  the  true  direction  to  miss  his  way ;  and  this  cir 
cumstance  suggested  to  the  governor  an  expedient  which 
was  highly  approved  of  by  his  friend  and  counsellor,  cap 
tain  Belts,  when  it  was  laid  before  that  plain,  but  expe 
rienced,  seaman.  There  was  one  false  passage,  about  a 
league  within  the  group,  which  led  off  to  the  northward, 
and  far  from  all  the  settlements,  that  offered  several  in 
ducements  to  enter  it.  In  the  first  place,  it  had  more  of, 
the  appearance  of  a  main  channel,  at  its  point  of  junction, 
than  the  main  channel  itself,  and  might  easily  be  mistaken 
for  it ;  then,  it  turned  right  into  the  wind's  eye,  after  beat 
ing  up  it  for  a  league ;  and  at  the  end  of  a  long  reach  that 
ran  due-south-east,  it  narrowed  so  much  as  to  render  it 
questionable  whether  the  Anne  and  Martha  could  pass  be 
tween  the  rocks,  into  a  wide  bay  beyond.  This  bay  was 
the  true  cul-de-sac,  having  no  other  outlet  or  inlet  than  the 
narrow  pass  just  mentioned  ;  though  it  was  very  large,  was 
dotted  with  islands,  and  reached  quite  to  the  vicinity  of 
Loam  Island,  or  within  a  mile,  or  two,  of  the  Reef. 

The  main  question  was  whether  the  schooner  and  the 
sloop  could  pass  through  the  opening  which  communicated 
between  the  reach  and  the  bay.  If  not,  they  must  Inevi 
tably  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  pirates,  should  they  enter 
the  false  channel,  and  be  followed  in.  Then,  even  admit 
ting  that  the  Anne  and  Martha  got  through  the  narrow 
passage,  should  the  pirates  follow  them  in  their  boats, 
there  would  be  very  little  probability  of  their  escaping; 
though  they  might  elude  their  pursuers  for  a  time  among 
the  islands.  Captain  Betts  was  of  opinion  that  the  two 
vessels  could  get  through,  and  was  strongly  in  faveur  of 
endeavouring  to  lead  the  enemy  off  the  true  course  to  the 
Reef,  by  entangling  them  in  this  cul-de-sac.  If  nothing 
but  delay  was  gained,  delay  would  be  something.  It  was 
36 


422  THE   CRATER; 

always  an  advantage  to  the  assailed  to  have  time  to  recover 
from  their  first  alarm,  and  to  complete  their  arrangements. 
The  governor  listened  to  his  friend's  arguments  with  fa 
vour,  but  he  sent  the  Neshamony  on  direct  to  the  Reef, 
with  a  letter  to  Pennock,  acquainting  that  functionary 
with  the  state  of  things,  the  intended  plan,  and  a  request 
that  a  twelve-pounder,  that  was  mounted  on  a  travelling 
carriage,  might  be  put  on  board  the  boat,  and  sent  to  a 
landing,  whence  it  might  easily  be  dragged  by  hand  to  the 
narrow  passage  so  often  mentioned.  This  done,  he  took 
the  way  into  the  false  channel  himself. 

The  governor,  as  a  matter  of  course,  kept  at  a  safe  dis 
tance  ahead  of  the  pirates  in  the  Anne  and  the  Martha. 
This  he  was  enabled  to  do  quite  easily,  since  fore-and-aft 
vessels  make  much  quicker  tacks  than  those  that  are 
square-rigged.  As  respects  water,  there  was  enough  of 
that  almost  everywhere ;  it  being  rather  a  peculiarity  of  the 
group,  that  nearly  every  one  of  its  passages  had  good  chan 
nels  and  bold  shores.  There  was  one  shoal,  however,  and 
that  of  some  extent,  in  the  long  reach  of  the  false  channel 
named ;  and  when  the  governor  resolved  to  venture  in 
there,  it  was  not  without  the  hope  of  leading  the  pirate 
ship  on  it.  The  water  on  this  shoal  was  about  sixteen 
feet  deep,  and  there  was  scarce  a  hope  of  either  of  the 
brigs  fetching  up  on  it;  but,  could  the  ship  be  enticed 
there,  and  did  she  only  strike  with  good  way  on  her,  and 
on  a  falling  tide,  her  berth  might  be  made  very  uncom 
fortable.  Although  this  hope  appeared  faintly  in  the  back 
ground  of  the  governor's  project,  his  principal  expectation 
was  that  of  being  able  to  decoy  the  strangers  into  a  cul-de- 
sac,  and  to  embarrass  them  with  delays  and  losses.  As 
soon  as  the  Neshamony  was  out  of  sight,  the  Anne  and 
Martha,  therefore,  accompanied  by  the  other  boats,  stood 
into  the  false  channel,  and  went  off  to  the  northward  mer 
rily,  with  a  leading  wind.  When  the  enemy  reached  the 
point,  they  did  not  hesitate  to  follow,  actually  setting  stud 
ding  sails  in  their  eagerness  not  to  be  left  too  far  behind. 
It  is  probable,  that  Waally  was  of  but  little  service  to  his 
allies  just  then,  for,  after  all,  the  knowledge  of  that  chief 
was  limited  to  a  very  imperfect  acquaintance  with  such 
channels  as  would  admit  of  the  passage  of  even  canoes. 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  423 

The  distances  were  by  no  means  trifling1  in  these  crooked 
passages.  By  the  true  channel,  it  was  rather  more  than 
seven  and  twenty  miles  from  the  western  roads  to  the 
Reef;  but,  it  was  fully  tern  more  by  this  false  channel, 
even  deducting  the  half  league  where  there  was  no  passage 
at  all,  or  the  bottom  of  the  bag.  Now,  it  required  time  to 
beat  up  such  a  distance,  and  the  sun  was  setting  when  the 
governor  reached  the  shoal  already  mentioned,  about  which 
he  kept  working  for  some  time,  in  the  hope  of  enticing  the 
ship  on  it  in  the  dark.  But  the  pirates  were  too  wary  to 
be  misled,  in  this  fashion.  The  light  no  sooner  left  them 
than  they  took  in  all  their  canvas  and  anchored.  It  is  pro 
bable,  that  they  believed  themselves  on  their  certain  way 
to  the  Reef,  and  felt  indisposed  to  risk  anything  by  ad 
venturing  in  the  obscurity.  Both  parties,  consequently, 
prepared  to  pass  the  night  at  their  anchors.  The  Anne 
and  Martha  were  now  within  »less  than  a  mile  of  the  all- 
important  passage,  through  which  they  were  to  make  their 
escape,  if  they  escaped  at  all.  The  opportunity  of  ascer 
taining  the  fact  was  not  to  be  neglected,  and  it  was  no 
sooner  so  dark  as  to  veil  his  movements  than  the  governor 
went  on  board  the  Martha,  which  was  a  vessel  of  more 
beam  than  the  Anne,  and  beat  her  up  to  the  rocks,  in 
order  to  make  a  trial  of  its  capacity.  It  was  just  possible 
to  take  the  sloop  through  in  several  places;  but,  in  one 
spot,  the  rocks  came  too  near  together  to  admit  of  her 
being  hauled  between  them.  The  circumstances  would 
not  allow  of  delay,  and  to  work  everybody  went,  with  such 
implements  as  offered,  to  pick  away  the  rock  and  to  open 
a  passage.  By  midnight,  this  was  done;  and  the  Martha 
was  carried  through  into  the  bay  beyond.  Here  she  stood 
off  a  short  distance  and  anchored.  The  governor  went 
back  to  his  own  craft  and  moved  her  about  a  mile,  being 
apprehensive  of  a  boat  attack  in  the  darkness,  should  he 
remain  where  he  was.  This  precaution  was  timely,  for, 
in  the  morning,  after  day  had  dawned,  no  less  than  seven 
boats  were  seen  pulling  down  to  the  pirates,  which  had,  no 
doubt,  been  looking  for  the  schooner  and  the  sloop  in  vain. 
The  governor  got  great  credit  for  this  piece  of  manage 
ment  ;  more  even  than  might  have  been  expected,  the  vul 
gar  usually  bestowing  their  applause  on  acts  of  a  glittering 


424  THE  CRATER; 

character,  rather  than  on  those  which  denote  calculation 
and  forethought. 

As  the  day  advanced  the  pirates  re-commenced  their 
operations.  The  delay,  however,  had  given  the  colonists 
a  great  advantage.  There  had  been  time  to  communicate 
with  the  Reef,  and  to  receive  the  gun  sent  for.  It  had 
greatly  encouraged  the  people  up  at  the  town,  to  hear  that 
their  enemies  were  in  the  false  channel;  and  they  re 
doubled  their  efforts,  as  one  multiplies  his  blows  on  a  re« 
treating  enemy.  Pennock  sent  the  governor  most  encou 
raging  reports,  and  gave  him  to  understand  that  he  had 
ordered  nearly  all  the  men  in  from  the  out-posts,  leaving 
just  enough  to  have  a  look-out,  and  to  keep  the  Kannakas 
in  order.  As  it  was  now  understood  that  the  attack  must 
be  on  the  capital,  there  was  every  reason  for  taking  this 
course. 

All  the  vessels  were  soon  under  way  again.  The  pirates 
missed  the  Martha,  which  they  rightly  enough  supposed 
had  gone  ahead.  They  were  evidently  a  good  deal  puzzled 
about  the  channel,  but  supposed  it  must  be  somewhere  to 
windward.  In  the  mean  time,  the  governor  kept  the  Anne 
mano3uvring  around  the  shoal,  in  the  hope  of  luring  the  ship 
on  it.  Nor  was  he  without  rational  hopes  of  success,  for 
the  brigs  separated,  one  going  close  to  each  side  of  the 
sound,  to  look  for  the  outlet,  while  the  ship  kept  beating 
up  directly  in  its  centre,  making  a  sinuous  course  towards 
the  schooner,  which  was  always  near  the  shallow  water. 
At  length  the  governor  was  fully  rewarded  for  his  temerity  ; 
the  admiral  had  made  a  stretch  that  carried  him  laterally 
past  the  lee  side  ( f  the  shoal,  and  when  he  went  about,  he 
looked  directly  fcr  the  Anne,  which  was  standing  back 
and  forth  near  its  weather  margin.  Here  the  governor 
held  on,  until  he  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  ship 

i'ust  verging  on  the  weather  side  of  the  shoal,  when  he  up 
elm,  and  stood  off  to  leeward,  as  if  intending  to  pass  out 
of  the  cul-de-sac  by  the  way  he  had  entered,  giving  his 
pursuers  the  slip.  This  bold  manoeuvre  took  the  pirate 
admiral  by  surprise,  and  being  in  the  vessel  that  was  much 
the  nearest  to  the  Anne,  he  up  helm,  and  was  plumped  on 
the  shoal  with  strong  way  on  him,  in  less  than  five  minutes  ! 
The  instant  the  governor  saw  this,  he  hauled  his  wind  and 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  425 

beat  back  again,  passing  the  broadside  of  the  ship  with 
perfect  impunity,  her  people  being  too  much  occupied  with 
their  own  situation,  to  think  of  their  guns,  or  of  molesting 
him. 

The  strange  ship  had  run  aground  within  half  a  mile  of 
the  spot  where  the  twelve-pounder  was  planted,  and  that 
gun  now  opened  on  her  with  great  effect.  She  lay  quar 
tering  to  this  new  enemy,  and  the  range  was  no  sooner 
obtained,  than  every  shot  hulled  her.  The  governor  now 
landed,  and  went  to  work  seriously,  first  ordering  the  Anne 
carried  through  the  pass,  to  place  her  beyond  the  reach  of 
the  brigs.  A  forge  happened  to  be  in  the  Anne,  to  make 
some  repairs  to  her  iron  work,  and  this  forge,  a  small  one 
it  was  true,  was  taken  ashore,  and  an  attempt  was  made  to 
heat  some  shot  in  it.  The  shot  had  been  put  into  the  forge 
an  hour  or  two  before,  but  a  fair  trial  was  not  made  until 
the  whole  apparatus  was  landed.  For  the  next  hour  the 
efforts  of  both  sides  were  unremitted.  One  of  the  brigs 
went  to  the  assistance  of  the  admiral,  while  the  other  en 
deavoured  to  silence  the  gun,  which  was  too  securely 
placed,  however,  to  mind  her  broadsides.  One  shot  hulling 
her,  soon  drove  her  to  leeward ;  after  which,  all  the  atten 
tion  of  the  pirates  was  bestowed  on  their  ship. 

The  admiral,  beyond  all  doubt,  was  very  awkwardly 
placed.  He  had  the  whole  width  of  the  shoal  to  leeward 
of  him,  could  only  get  off  by  working  directly  in  the  face 
of  the  fire,  and  had  gone  on  with  seven  knots  way  on  his 
ship.  The  bottom  was  a  soft  mud ;  and  the  colonists  knew 
that  nothing  but  anchors  laid  to  windward,  with  a  heavy 
strain  and  a  good  deal  of  lightening,  would  ever  take  that 
vessel  out  of  her  soft  berth.  Of  this  fact  the  pirates  them 
selves  soon  began  to  be  convinced,  for  they  were  seen 
pumping  out  their  water.  As  for  the  brigs,  they  were  by 
no  means  well  handled.  Instead  of  closing  with  the  bat 
tery,  and  silencing  the  gun,  as  they  might  have  done,  they 
kept  aloof,  and  even  rendered  less  assistance  to  the  ship 
than  was  in  their  power.  In  point  of  fact,  they  were  in 
confusion,  and  manifested  that  want  of  order  and  submis 
sion  to  authority,  as  well  as  self-devotion,  that  would  have 
been  shown  among  men  in  an  honest  service :  guilt  para- 
lyied  their  efforts,  rendering  them  timid  and  distrustful. 
36* 


426  THE   CRATER; 

After  near  two  hours  of  cannonading,  during  which  the 
colonists  had  done  the  pirates  a  good  deal  of  damage,  and 
the  pirates  literally  had  not  injured  the  colonists  at  all,  the 
governor  was  ready  with  his  hot  shot,  which  he  had  brought 
to  something  more  than  a  red  heat.  The  gun  was  loaded 
with  great  care,  and  fired,  after  having  been  deliberately 
pointed  by  the  governor  himself.  The  ship  was  hulled, 
and  a  trifling  explosion  followed  on  board.  That  shot 
materially  added  to  the  confusion  among  the  pirates,  and 
it  was  immediately  followed  by  another,  which  struck,  also. 
It  was  now  so  apparent  that  confusion  prevailed  among 
the  pirates,  that  the  governor  would  not  take  the  time 
necessary  to  put  in  the  other  hot  shot,  but  he  loaded  and 
fired  as  fast  as  he  could,  in  the  ordinary  way. 

In  less  than  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after  the  first  hot  shot 
was  fired,  smoke  poured  out  of  the  admiral's  main-deck 
ports ;  and,  two  minutes  later,  it  was  succeeded  by  flames. 

From  that  moment  the  result  of  the  conflict  was  no 
longer  doubtful.  The  pirates,  among  whom  great  confu 
sion  prevailed,  even  previously  to  this  disaster,  now  lost  all 
subordination,  and  it  was  soon  seen  that  each  man  worked 
for  himself,  striving  to  save  as  much  as  he  could  of  his  ill- 
gotten  plunder.  The  governor  understood  the  state  of  the 
enemy,  and,  though  prudence  could  scarcely  justify  his 
course,  he  determined  to  press  him  to  the  utmost.  The 
Anne  and  Martha  were  both  brought  back  through  the 
pass,  and  the  twelve-pounder  was  taken  on  board  the 
former,  there  being  room  to  fight  it  between  her  masts. 
As  soon  as  this  was  done,  the  two  craft  bore  down  on  the 
brigs,  which  were,  by  this  time,  a  league  to  leeward  of  the 
burning  ship,  their  commanders  having  carried  them  there 
to  avoid  the  effects  of  the  expected  explosion.  The  admiral 
and  his  crew  saved  themselves  in  the  boats,  abandoning 
nearly  all  their  property,  and  losing  a  good  many  men. 
Indeed,  when  the  last  boat  left  the  ship,  there  were  several 
of  her  people  below,  so  far  overcome  by  liquor,  as  to  be 
totally  helpless.  These  men  were  abandoned  too,  as  were 
all  the  wounded,  including  Waally,  who  had  lost  an  arm 
by  the  fire  of  the  battery. 

Neither  did  the  governor  like  the  idea  of  passing  very 
near  the  ship,  which  had  now  been  burning  fully  an  hour. 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  427 

In  going  to  leeward,  he  gave  her  a  berth,  and  it  was  well 
he  did,  for  she  blew  up  while  the  Anne  and  Martha,  as  it 
was,  were  considerably  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  her. 
The  colonists  ever  afterwards  considered  an  incident  con 
nected  with  this  explosion,  as  a  sort  of  Providential  mani 
festation  of  the  favour  of  Heaven.  The  Martha  was  nearest 
to  the  ship,  at  the  instant  of  her  final  disaster,  and  very 
many  fragments  were  thrown  around  her ;  a  few  even  on 
her  decks.  Among  the  last  was  a  human  body,  which  was 
cast  a  great  distance  in  the  air,  and  fell,  like  a  heavy  clod, 
across  the  gunwale  of  the  sloop.  This  proved  to  be  the 
body  of  Waally,  one  of  the  arms  having  been  cut  away  by 
a  shot,  three  hours  before !  Thus  perished  a  constant  and 
most  wily  enemy  of  the  colony,  and  who  had,  more  than 
once,  brought  it  to  the  verge  of  destruction,  by  his  cupidity 
and  artifices. 

From  this  moment,  the  pirates  thought  .little  of  anything 
but  of  effecting  their  retreat,  and  of  getting  out  into  open 
water  again.  The  governor  saw  this,  and  pressed  them 
hard.  The  twelve-pounder  opened  on  the  nearest  brig,  as 
soon  as  her  shot  would  tell ;  and  even  the  Martha's  swivel 
was  heard,  like  the  bark  of  a  cur  that  joins  in  the  clamour 
when  a  strange  dog  is  set  upon  by  the  pack  of  a  village. 
The  colonists  on  shore  flew  into  the  settlements,  to  let  it 
be  known  that  the  enemy  was  retreating,  when  every  dwell 
ing  poured  out  its  inmates  in  pursuit.  Even  the  females 
now  appeared  in  arms;  there  being  no  such  incentive  to 
patriotism,  on  occasions  of  the  kind,  as  the  cry  that  the 
battle  has  been  won.  Those  whom  it  might  have  been 
hard  to  get  within  the  sound  of  a  gun,  a  few  hours  before, 
now  became  valiant,  and  pressed  into  the  van,  which  bore 
a  very  different  aspect,  before  a  retreating  foe,  from  that 
which  it  presented  on  their  advance. 

In  losing  Waally,  the  strangers  lost  the  only  person 
among  them  who  had  any  pretension  to  be  thought  a  pilot. 
He  knew  very  little  of  the  channels  to  the  Reef,  at  the 
best,  though  he  had  been  there  thrice ;  but,  now  he  was 
gone,  no  one  left  among  them  knew  anything  about  them 
at  all.  Under  all  the  circumstances,  therefore,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  the  admiral  should  think  more  of  extricating 
his  two  brigs  from  the  narrow  waters,  than  of  pursuing  hii 


428  THE  CRATER; 

original  plan  of  conquest.  It  was  not  difficult  to  find  his 
way  back  by  the  road  he  had  come ;  and  that  road  he  tra 
velled  as  fast  as  a  leading  breeze  would  carry  him  along  it. 
But  retreat,  as  it  now  appeared,  was  not  the  only  difficulty 
with  which  this  freebooter  had  to  contend.  It  happened 
that  no  kind  feeling  existed  between  the  admiral  and  the 
officers  of  the  largest  of  the  brigs.  So  far  had  their  ani 
mosity  extended,  that  the  admiral  had  deemed  it  expedient 
to  take  a  large  sum  of  money,  which  had  fallen  to  the 
share  of  the  vessel  in  question,  out  of  that  brig,  and  keep 
it  on  board  the  ship,  as  a  guaranty  that  they  would  not  run 
away  with  their  craft.  This  proceeding  had  not  strength 
ened  the  bond  between  the  parties;  and  nothing  had  kept 
down  the  strife  but  the  expectation  of  the  large  amount  of 
plunder  that  was  to  be  obtained  from  the  colony.  That 
hope  was  now  disappointed ;  and,  the  whole  time  the  two 
vessels  were  retiring  before  the  Anne  and  the  Martha, 
preparations  were  making  on  board  one  of  the  brigs  to 
reclaim  this  ill-gotten  treasure,  and  on  board  the  other  to 
retain  it.  By  a  species  of  freemasonry  peculiar  to  their 
pursuits,  the  respective  crews  were  aware  of  each  other's 
designs;  and  when  they  issued  nearly  abreast  out  of  the 
passage,  into  the  inner  bay  of  the  Western  Roads,  one 
passed  to  the  southward  of  the  island,  and  the  other  to  the 
northward ;  the  Anne  and  Martha  keeping  close  in  their 
wakes. 

As  the  two  vessels  cleared  the  island  and  got  into  open 
water,  the  struggle  commenced  in  earnest ;  the  disaffected 
brig  firing  into  the  admiral.  The  broadside  was  returned, 
and  the  two  vessels  gradually  neared  each  other,  until  the 
canopies  of  smoke  which  accompanied  their  respective 
movements  became  one.  The  combat  now  raged,  and  with 
a  savage  warmth,  for  hours ;  both  brigs  running  off  the  land 
under  short  canvas.  At  length  the  firing  ceased,  and  the 
smoke  so  far  cleared  away  as  to  enable  the  governor  to 
take  a  look  at  the  damages  done.  In  this  respect,  there 
was  little  to  choose;  each  vessel  having  suffered,  and  seem 
ingly  each  about  as  much  as  the  other.  After  consuming 
an  hour  or  two  in  repairing  damages,  the  combat  was  re 
newed  ;  when  the  two  colony  craft,  seeing  no  prospects  of 
its  soon  terminating,  and  being  now  several  leagues  to  lee* 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  429 

ward  of  the  group,  hauled  up  for  the  roads  again.  The 
brigs  continued  their  fight,  always  running  off  before  the 
wind,  and  went  out  of  sight,  canopied  by  smoke,  long  after 
the  reports  of  their  guns  had  become  inaudible.  This  was 
the  last  the  governor  ever  saw  or  heard  of  these  dangerous 
enemies. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

VOX    POPUI.I,    TOX    DEI. 

Venerable  Axiom. 

AFTER  this  unlooked-for  termination  of  what  the  colo 
nists  called  the  '  Pirate-War,'  the  colony  enjoyed  a  long 
period  of  peace  and  prosperity.  The  whaling  business 
was  carried  on  with  great  success,  and  many  connected 
with  it  actually  got  rich.  Among  these  was  the  governor, 
who,  in  addition  to  his  other  means,  soon  found  himself  in 
possession  of  more  money  than  he  could  profitably  dispose 
of  in  that  young  colony.  By  his  orders,  no  less  than  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars  were  invested  in  his  name,  in 
the  United  States  six  per  cents,  his  friends  in  America 
being  empowered  to  draw  the  dividends,  and,  after  using 
a  due  proportion  in  the  way  of  commissions,  to  re-invest 
the  remainder  to  his  credit. 

Nature  did  quite  as  much  as  art,  in  bringing  on  the 
colony;  the  bounty  of  God,  as  the  industry  of  man.  It  is 
our  duty,  however,  to  allow  that  the  colonists  did  not  so 
regard  the  matter.  A  great  change  came  over  their  feel 
ings,  after  the  success  of  the  '  Pirate-War,'  inducing  them 
to  take  a  more  exalted  view  of  themselves  and  their  con 
dition  than  had  been  their  wont.  The  ancient  humility 
seemed  suddenly  to  disappear;  and  in  its  place  a  vain 
glorious  estimate  of  themselves  and  of  their  prowess  arose 
among  the  people.  The  word  "  people,"  too,  was  in 
everybody's  mouth,  as  if  the  colonists  themselves  had 
made  those  lovely  islands,  endowed  them  with  fertility, 


430  THE   CRATER; 

and  rendered  them  what  they  were  now  fast  becoming—, 
scenes  of  the  most  exquisite  rural  beauty,  as  well  as  gra 
naries  of  abundance.  By  this  time,  the  palm-tree  covered 
more  or  less  of  evei)  island;  and  the  orange,  lime,  shad 
dock  and  other  similar  plants,  filled  the  air  with  the  fra 
grance  of  their  flowers,  or  rendered  it  bright  with  the 
golden  hues  of  their  fruits.  In  short,  everything  adapted 
to  the  climate  was  flourishing  in  the  plantations,  and  plenty 
reigned  even  in  the  humblest  dwelling. 

This  was  a  perilous  condition  for  the  healthful  humility 
of  human  beings.  Two  dangers  beset  them ;  both  co 
loured  and  magnified  by  a  common  tendency.  One  was 
that  of  dropping  into  luxurious  idleness — the  certain  pre 
cursor,  in  such  a  climate,  of  sensual  indulgences;  and  the 
other  was  that  of  "  waxing  fat,  and  kicking."  The  ten 
dency  common  to  both,  was  to  place  self  before  God,  and 
not  only  to  believe  that  they  merited  all  they  received,  but 
that  they  actually  created  a  good  share  of  it. 

Of  luxurious  idleness,  it  was  perhaps  too  soon  to  dread 
its  worst  fruits.  The  men  and  women  retained  too  many 
of  their  early  habits  and  impressions  to  drop  easily  into 
such  a  chasm ;  on  the  contrary,  they  rather  looked  forward 
to  producing  results  greater  than  any  which  had  yet  at 
tended  their  exertions.  An  exaggerated  view  of  self,  how 
ever,  and  an  almost  total  forgetful  ness  cf  God,  took  the 
place  of  the  colonial  humility  with  which  they  had  com 
menced  their  career  in  this  new  region.  These  feelings 
were  greatly  heightened  by  three  agents,  that  men  ordina 
rily  suppose  might  have  a  very  different  effect — religion, 
law,  and  the  press. 

When  the  Rancocus  returned,  a  few  months  after  the 
repulse  of  the  pirates,  she  had  on  board  of  her  some  fifty 
emigrants;  the  council  still  finding  itself  obliged  to  admit 
the  friends  of  families  already  settled  in  the  colony,  on  due 
application.  Unhappily,  among  these  emigrants  were  a 
printer,  a  lawyer,  and  no  less  than  four  persons  who  might 
be  termed  divines.  Of  the  last,  one  was  a  presbyterian, 
one  a  methodist, — the  third  was  a  baptist,  and  the  ifourth  a 
quaker.  Not  long  after  the  arrival  of  this  importation,  its 
consequences  became  visible.  The  sectaries  commenced 
with  a  thousand  professions  of  brotherly  love,  and  a  great 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  431 

parade  of  Christian  charity ;  indeed  they  pretended  that 
they  had  emigrated  in  order  to  enjoy  a  higher  degree  of 
religious  liberty  than  was  now  to  be  found  in  America, 
where  men  were  divided  into  sects,  thin-king  more  of  their 
distinguishing  tenets  than  of  the  Being  whom  they  pro 
fessed  to  serve.  Forgetting  the  reasons  which  brought 
them  from  home,  or  quite  possibly  carrying  out  the  im 
pulses  which  led  them  to  resist  their  former  neighbours, 
these  men  set  to  work,  immediately,  to  collect  followers, 
and  believers  after  their  own  peculiar  notions.  Parson 
Hornblower,  who  had  hitherto  occupied  the  ground  by 
himself,  but  who  was  always  a  good  deal  inclined  to  what 
are  termed  "  distinctive  opinions,"  buckled  on  his  armour, 
and  took  the  field  in  earnest.  In  order  that  the  sheep  of 
one  flock  should  not  be  mistaken  for  the  sheep  of  another, 
great  care  was  taken  to  mark  each  and  all  with  the  brand 
of  sect.  One  clipped  an  ear,  another  smeared  the  wool 
(or  drew  it  over  the  eyes)  and  a  third,  as  was  the  case 
with  Friend  Stephen  Dighton,  the  quaker,  put  on  an  entire 
covering,  so  that  his  sheep  might  be  known  by  their  out 
ward  symbols,  far  as  they  could  be  seen.  In  a  word,  on 
those  remote  and  sweet  islands,  which,  basking  in  the  sun 
and  cooled  by  the  trades,  seemed  designed  by  providence 
to  sing  hymns  daily  and  hourly  to  their  maker's  praise,  the 
subtleties  of  sectarian  faith  smothered  that  humble  sub 
mission  to  the  divine  law  by  trusting  solely  to  the  media 
tion,  substituting  in  its  place  immaterial  observances  and 
theories  which  were  much  more  strenuously  urged  than 
clearly  understood.  The  devil,  in  the  form  of  a  "profes 
sor,"  once  again  entered  Eden;  and  the  Peak,  with  so 
much  to  raise  the  soul  above  the  grosser  strife  of  men,  was 
soon  ringing  with  discussions  on  "  free  grace,"  "  immer 
sion,"  "  spiritual  baptism,"  and  the  "  apostolical  succes 
sion."  The  birds  sang  as  sweetly  as  ever,  and  their 
morning  and  evening  songs  hymned  the  praises  of  their 
creator  as  of  old;  but,  not  so  was  it  with  the  morning  and 
evening  devotions  of  men.  These  last  began  to  pray  at 
each  other,  and  if  Mr.  Hornblower  was  an  exception,  it 
was  because  his  admirable  liturgy  did  not  furnish  him 
with  the  means  of  making  these  forays  into  the  enemy's 
camp. 


432  THE   CRATER; 

Nor  did  thfc  accession  of  law  and  intelligence  help  the 
matter  much.  Shortly  after  the  lawyer  made  his  appear 
ance,  men  began  to  discover  that  they  were  wronged  by 
their  neighbours,  in  a  hundred  ways  which  they  had  never 
before  discovered.  Law,  which  had  hitherto  been  used  for 
the  purposes  of  justice,  and  of  justice  only,  now  began  to 
be  used  for  those  of  speculation  and  revenge.  A  virtue 
was  found  in  it  that  had  never  before  been  suspected  of  ex 
isting  in  the  colony;  it  being  discovered  that  men  could  make 
not  only  very  comfortable  livings,  but,  in  some  cases,  get 
rich,  by  the  law;  not  by  its  practice,  but  by  its  practices. 
Now  came  into  existence  an  entire  new  class  of  philan 
thropists  ;  men  who  were  ever  ready  to  lend  their  money 
to  such  of  the  needy  as  possessed  property,  taking  judg 
ment  bonds,  mortgages,  and  other  innocent  securities, 
which  were  received  because  the  lender  always  acted  on  a 
principle  of  not  lending  without  them,  or  had  taken  a 
vow.  or  made  their  wives  promises ;  the  end  of  all  being 
a  transfer  of  title,  by  which  the  friendly  assistant  com 
monly  relieved  his  dupe  of  the  future  care  of  all  his  pro 
perty.  The  governor  soon  observed  that  one  of  these  phi 
lanthropists  rarely  extended  his  saving  hand,  that  the  bor 
rower  did  not  come  out  as  naked  as  the  ear  of  the  corn 
that  has  been  through  the  sheller,  or  nothing  but  cob ;  and 
that,  too,  in  a  sort  of  patent-right  time.  Then  there  were 
the  labourers  of  the  press  to  add  to  the  influence  of  those 
of  religion  and  the  law.  The  press  took  up  the  cause  of 
human  rights,  endeavouring  to  transfer  the  power  of  the 
state  from  the  public  departments  to  its  own  printing-office ; 
and  aiming  at  establishing  all  the  equality  that  can  flourish 
when  one  man  has  a  monopoly  of  the  means  of  making 
his  facts  to  suit  himself,  leaving  his  neighbours  to  get  along 
under  such  circumstances  as  they  can.  But  the  private 
advantage  secured  to  himself  by  this  advocate  of  the 
rights  of  all,  was  the  smallest  part  of  the  injury  he  did, 
though  his  own  interests  were  never  lost  sight  of,  and  co 
loured  al)  he  did ;  the  people  were  soon  convinced  that 
they  had  hitherto  been  living  under  an  unheard-of  tyranny, 
and  were  invoked  weekly  to  arouse  in  their  might,  and  be 
true  to  themselves  and  their  posterity.  In  the  first  place, 
not  a  tenth  of  them  had  ever  been  consulted  on  the  sur> 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  433 

ject  of  the  institutions  at  all,  but  had  been  compelled  to 
take  them  as  they  found  them.  Nor  had  the  present  in 
cumbents  of  office  been  placed  in  power  by  a  vote  of  a 
majority,  the  original  colonists  having  saved  those  who 
came  later  to  the  island  all  trouble  in  the  premises.  In 
these  facts  was  an  unceasing  theme  of  declamation  and 
complaint  to  be  found.  It  was  surprising  how  little  the 
people  really  knew  of  the  oppression  under  which  they 
laboured,  until  this  stranger  came  amongst  them  to  en 
lighten  their  understandings.  Nor  was  it  less  wonderful 
how  many  sources  of  wrong  he  exposed,  that  no  one  had 
ever  dreamed  of  having  an  existence.  Although  there  was 
not  a  tax  of  any  sort  laid  in  the  colony,  not  a  shilling  ever 
collected  in  the  way  of  import  duties,  he  boldly  pronounced 
the  citizens  of  the  islands  to  be  the  most  overburthened 
people  in  Christendom  !  The  taxation  of  England  was  no 
thing  to  it,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  proclaim  a  general 
bankruptcy  as  the  consequence,  unless  some  of  his  own 
expedients  were  resorted  to,  in  order  to  arrest  the  evil. 
Our  limits  will  not  admit  of  a  description  of  the  process  by 
which  this  person  demonstrated  that  a  people  who  literally 
contributed  nothing  at  all,  were  overtaxed ;  but  any  one  who 
has  paid  attention  to  the  opposing  sides  of  a  discussion  on 
such  a  subject,  can  readily  imagine  how  easily  such  an  ap 
parent  contradiction  can  be  reconciled,  and  the  proposition 
demonstrated. 

In  the  age  of  which  we  are  writing,  a  majority  of  man 
kind  fancied  that  a  statement  made  in  print  was  far  more 
likely  to  be  true  than  one  made  orally.  Then  he  who  stood 
up  in  his  proper  person  and  uttered  his  facts  on  the  respon 
sibility  of  his  personal  character,  was  far  less  likely  to  gain 
credit  than  the  anonymous  scribbler,  who  recorded  his  lie 
on  paper,  though  he  made  his  record  behind  a  screen,  and 
half  the  time  as  much  without  personal  identity  as  he 
wouid  be  found  to  be  without  personal  character,  were  he 
actually  seen  and  recognised.  In  our  time,  the  press  has 
pretty  effectually  cured  all  observant  persons  at  least  of 
giving  faith  to  a  statement  merely  because  it  is  in  print, 
and  has  become  so  far  alive  to  its  own  great  inferiority  as 
publicly  to  talk  of  conventions  to  purify  itself,  and  other 
wise  to  do  something  to  regain  its  credit ;  but  such  was 
37 


434  THE  CRATER; 

not  the  fact,  even  in  America,  forty  years  since.  The 
theory  of  an  unrestrained  press  has  fully  developed  itself 
within  the  last  quarter  of  a  century,  so  that  even  the 
elderly  ladies,  who  once  said  with  marvellous  unction,  "  It 
must  be  true,  for  it's  in  print,"  are  now  very  apt  to  say, 
"Oh!  it's  only  a  newspaper  account!"  The  foulest  pool 
has  been  furnished  by  a  beneficent  Providence  with  the 
means  of  cleansing  its  own  waters. 

But  the  "  Crater"  Truth- Teller"  could  utter  its  lies,  as  a 
privileged  publication,  at  the  period  of  this  narrative. 
Types  still  had  a  sanctity ;  and  it  is  surprising  how  much 
they  deceived,  and  how  many  were  their  dupes.  The  jour 
nal  did  not  even  take  the  ordinary  pains  to  mystify  its 
readers,  and  to  conceal  its  own  cupidity,  as  are  practised 
in  communities  more  advanced  in  civilization.  We  dare 
say  that  journals  are  to  be  found  in  London  and  Paris,  that 
take  just  as  great  liberties  with  the  fact  as  the  Crater  Truth- 
Teller;  but  they  treat  their  readers  with  a  little  more  out 
ward  respect,  however  much  they  may  mislead  them  with 
falsehoods.  Your  London  and  Paris  publics  are  not  to  be 
dealt  with  as  if  composed  of  credulous  old  women,  but  re 
quire  something  like  a  plausible  mystification  to  throw  dust 
in  their  eyes.  They  have  a  remarkable  proneness  to  believe 
that  which  they  wish,  it  is  true ;  but,  beyond  that  weakness, 
some  limits  are  placed  to  their  faith,  and  appearances  must 
be  a  good  deal  consulted. 

But  at  the  crater  no  such  precaution  seemed  to  be  ne 
cessary.  It  is  true  that  the  editor  did  use  the  pronoun 
"  we,"  in  speaking  of  himself;  but  he  took  all  other  occa 
sions  to  assert  his  individuality,  and  to  use  his  journal  dili 
gently  in  its  behalf.  Thus,  whenever  he  got  into  the  law, 
his  columns  were  devoted  to  publicly  maintaining  his  own 
side  of  the  question,  although  such  a  course  was  not  only 
opposed  to  every  man's  sense  of  propriety,  but  was  directly 
flying  into  the  teeth  of  the  laws  of  the  land ;  but  little  did 
he  care  for  that.  He  was  a  public  servant,  and  of  course 
all  he  did  was  right.  To  be  sure,  other  public  servants 
were  in  the  same  category,  all  they  did  being  wrong ;  but 
he  had  the  means  of  telling  his  own  story,  and  a  large 
number  of  gaping  dunces  were  ever  ready  to  believe  him. 
His  manner  of  filling  his  larder  is  particularly  worthy  of 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  435 

being  mentioned.  Quite  as  often  as  once  a  week,  his  jour 
nal  had  some  such  elegant  article  as  this,  viz  :  —  "  Our 
esteemed  friend,  Peter  Snooks"  —  perhaps  it  was  Peter 
Snooks,  Esquire — "  has  just  brought  us  a  fair  specimen  of 
his  cocoa-nuts,  which  we  do  not  hesitate  in  recommending 
to  the  housekeepers  of  the  crater,  as  among  the  choicest 
of  the  group."  Of  course,  'Squire  Snooks  was  grateful  for 
this  puff,  and  often  brought  more  cocoa-nuts.  The  same 
great  supervision  was  extended  to  the  bananas,  the  bread 
fruit,  the  cucumbers,  the  melons,  and  even  the  squashes, 
and  always  with  the  same  results  to  the  editorial  larder. 
Once,  however,  this  worthy  did  get  himself  in  a  quandary 
with  his  use  of  the  imperial  pronoun.  A  mate  of  one  of 
the  vessels  inflicted  personal  chastisement  on  him,  for  some 
impertinent  comments  he  saw  fit  to  make  on  the  honest 
tar's  vessel ;  and,  this  being  matter  of  intense  interest  to 
the  public  mind,  he  went  into  a  detail  of  all  the  evolutions 
of  the  combat.  Other  men  may  pull  each  other's  noses, 
and  inflict  kicks  and  blows,  without  the  world's  caring  a 
straw  about  it;  but  the  editorial  interest  is  too  intense  to 
be  overlooked  in  this  manner.  A  bulletin  of  the  battle 
was  published;  the  editor  speaking  of  himself  always  in 
the  plural,  out  of  excess  of  modesty,  and  to  avoid  ego 
tism  (!)  in  three  columns  which  were  all  about  himself, 
using  such  expressions  as  these:  —  "We  now  struck  our 
antagonist  a  blow  with  our  fist,  and  followed  this  up  with 
a  kick  of  our  foot,  and  otherwise  we  made  an  assault  on 
him  that  he  will  have  reason  to  remember  to  his  dying  day." 
Now,  these  expressions,  for  a  time,  set  all  the  old  women 
in  the  colony  against  the  editor,  until  he  went  into  an  ela 
borate  explanation,  showing  that  his  modesty  was  so  pain 
fully  sensitive  that  he  could  not  say  /  on  any  account, 
though  he  occupied  three  more  columns  of  his  paper  in 
explaining  the  state  of  our  feelings.  But,  at  first,  the  cry 
went  forth  that  the  battle  had  been  of  two  against  one; 
and  that  even  the  simple-minded  colonists  set  down  as 
somewhat  cowardly.  So  much  for  talking  about  we  in  the 
bulletin  of  a  single  combat ! 

The  political  effects  produced  by  this  paper,  however, 
were  much  the  most  material  part  of  its  results.  When 
ever  it  offended  and  disgusted  its  readers  by  its  dishonesty, 


436  THE   CRATER; 

selfishness,  vulgarity,  and  lies — and  it  did  this  every  week, 
being  a  hebdomadal  —  it  recovered  the  ground  it  had  lost 
by  beginning  to  talk  of  '  the  people'  and  their  rights.  This 
the  colonists  could  not  withstand.  All  their  sympathies 
were  enlisted  in  behalf  of  him  who  thought  so  much  of 
their  rights;  and,  at  the  very  moment  he  was  trampling  on 
these  rights,  to  advance  his  own  personal  views,  and  even 
treating  them  with  contempt  by  uttering  the  trash  he  did, 
they  imagined  that  he  and  his  paper  in  particular,  and  its 
doctrines  in  general,  were  a  sort  of  gift"  from  Heaven  to 
form  the  palladium  of  their  precious  liberties ! 

The  great  theory  advanced  by  this  editorial  tyro,  was, 
that  a  majority  of  any  community  had  a  right  to  do  as  it 
pleased.  The  governor  early  saw,  not  only  the  fallacies, 
but  the  danger  of  this  doctrine ;  and  he  wrote  several  com 
munications  himself,  in  order  to  prove  that  it  was  false.  If 
true,  he  contended  it  was  true  altogether;  and  that  it  must 
be  taken,  if  taken  as  an  axiom  at  all,  with  its  largest  con 
sequences.  Now,  if  a  majority  has  a  right  to  rule,  in  this 
arbitrary  manner,  it  has  a  right  to  set  its  dogmas  above  the 
commandments,  and  to  legalize  theft,  murder,  adultery, 
and  all  the  other  sins  denounced  in  the  twentieth  chapter 
of  Exodus.  This  was  a  poser  to  the  demagogue,  but  he 
made  an  effort  to  get  rid  of  it,  by  excepting  the  laws  of 
God,  which  he  allowed  that  even  majorities  were  bound  to 
respect.  Thereupon,  the  governor  replied  that  the  laws 
of  God  were  nothing  but  the  great  principles  which  ought 
to  govern  human  conduct,  and  that  his  concession  was  an 
avowal  that  there  was  a  power  to  which  majorities  should 
defer.  Now,  this  was  just  as  true  of  minorities  as  it  was 
of  majorities,  and  the  amount  of  it  all  was  that  men,  in 
establishing  governments,  merely  set  up  a  standard  of  prin 
ciples  which  they  pledged  themselves  to  respect ;  and  that, 
even  in  the  most  democratical  communities,  all  that  majo 
rities  could  legally  effect  was  to  decide  certain  minor  ques 
tions  which,  being  necessarily  referred  to  some  tribunal 
for  decision,  was  of  preference  referred  to  them.  If  there 
was  a. power  superior  to  the  will  of  the  majority,  in  the 
management  of  human  affairs,  then  majorities  were  not 
supreme ;  and  it  behooved  the  citizen  to  regard  the  last  as 
only  what  they  really  are,  and  what  they  were  probably 


OR,     VULCAN'S    PEAK.  437 

designed  to  be — tribunals  subject  to  the  control  of  certain 
just  principles. 

Constitutions,  or  the  fundamental  law,  the  governor  went 
on  to  say,  were  meant  to  be  the  expression  of  those  just 
and  general  principles  which  should  control  human  so 
ciety,  and  as  such  should  prevail  over  majorities.  Consti 
tutions  were  expressly  intended  to  defend  the  rights  of 
minorities ;  since  without  them,  each  question,  or  interest, 
might  be  settled  by  the  majority,  as  it  arose.  It  was  but  a 
truism  to  say  that  the  oppression  of  the  majority  was  the 
worst  sort  of  oppression ;  since  the  parties  injured  not  only 
endured  the  burthen  imposed  by  many,  but  were  cut  off 
from  the  sympathy  of  their  kind,  which  can  alleviate 
much  suffering,  by  the  inherent  character  of  the  tyranny. 

There  was  a  great  deal  of  good  sense,  and  much  truth 
in  what  the  governor  wrote,  on  this  occasion ;  but  of  what 
avail  could  it  prove  with  the  ignorant  and  short-sighted, 
who  put  more  trust  in  one  honeyed  phrase  of  the  journal, 
that  flourished  about  the  '  people'  and  their  '  rights,'  than 
in  all  the  arguments  that  reason,  sustained  even  by  revela 
tion,  could  offer  to  show  the  fallacies  and  dangers  of  this 
new  doctrine.     As  a  matter  of  course,  the  wiles  of  the 
demagogue  were  not  without  fruits.     Although  every  man 
in  the  colony,  either  in  his  own  person,  or  in  that  of  his 
parent  or  guardian,  had  directly  entered  into  the  covenants 
of  the  fundamental  law,  as  that  law  then  existed,  they  now 
began  to  quarrel  with  its  provisions,  and  to  advance  doc 
trines  that  would   subvert  everything  as  established,  in 
order   to   put   something  new  and  untried  in  its  place. 
Progress  was  the  great  desideratum ;  and  change  was  the 
hand-maiden  of  progress.     A  sort  of  '  puss  in  the  corner' 
game  was  started,  which  was  to  enable  those  who  had  no 
places  to  run  into  the  seats  of  those  who  had.     This  is  a 
favourite  pursuit  of  man,  all  over  the  world,  in  monarchies 
as  well  as  in  democracies ;  for,  after  all  that  institutions 
can  effect,  there  is  little  change  in  men  by  putting  on,  or 
in  taking  off  ermine  and  robes,  or  in  wearing  '  republican 
simplicity,'  in  office  or  out  of  office;  but  the  demagogue  is 
nothing  but  the  courtier,  pouring  out  his  homage  in  the 
gutters,  instead  of  in  an  ante-chamber. 

Nor  did  the  governor  run  into  extremes  in  his  attempts 
,37* 


438  THE  GRATER; 

to  restrain  the  false  reasoning  and  exaggerations  of  the 
demagogue  and  his  deluded,  or  selfish  followers.  Nothing 
would  be  easier  than  to  demonstrate  that  their  notions  of 
the  rights  of  numbers  was  wrong,  to  demonstrate  that  were 
their  theories  carried  out  in  practice,  there  could  be,  and 
would  be  nothing  permanent  or  settled  in  human  affairs ; 
yet  not  only  did  each  lustrum,  but  each  year,  each  month, 
each  week,  each  hour,  each  minute  demand  its  reform. 
Society  must  be  periodically  reduced  to  its  elements,  in 
order  to  redress  grievances.  The  governor  did  not  deny 
that  men  had  their  natural  rights,  at  the  very  moment  he 
insisted  that  these  rights  were  just  as  much  a  portion  of 
the  minority  as  of  the  majority.  He  was  perfectly  willing 
that  equal  laws  should  prevail,  as  equal  laws  did  prevail  in 
the  colony,  though  he  was  not  disposed  to  throw  every 
thing  into  confusion  merely  to  satisfy  a  theory.  For  a 
long  time,  therefore,  he  opposed  the  designs  of  the  new- 
school,  and  insisted  on  his  vested  rights,  as  established  in 
the  fundamental  law,  which  had  made  him  ruler  for  life. 
But  "  it  is  hard  to  kick  against  the  pricks."  Although 
the  claim  of  the  governor  was  in  every  sense  connected 
with  justice,  perfectly  sacred,  it  could  not  resist  the  throes 
of  cupidity,  selfishness,  and  envy.  By  this  time,  the  news 
paper,  that  palladium  of  liberty,  had  worked  the  minds  of 
the  masses  to  a  state  in  which  the  naked  pretension  of 
possessing  rights  that  were  not  common  to  everybody  else 
was,  to  the  last  degree,  "  tolerable  and  not  to  be  endured." 
To  such  a  height  did  the  fever  of  liberty  rise,  that  men 
assumed  a  right  to  quarrel  with  the  private  habits  of  the 
governor  and  his  family,  some  pronouncing  him  proud  be 
cause  he  did  not  neglect  his  teeth,  as  the  majority  did,  eat 
when  they  ate,  and  otherwise  presumed  to  be  of  different 
habits  from  those  around  him.  Some  even  objected  to 
him  because  he  spat  in  his  pocket-handkerchief,  and  did 
not  blow  his  nose  with  his  fingers. 

All  this  time,  religion  was  running  riot,  as  well  as  poli 
tics.  The  next-door  neighbours  hated  each  other  most 
sincerely,  because  they  took  different  views,  of  regenera 
tion,  justification,  predestination  and  all  the  other  subtle 
ties  of  doctrine.  What  was  remarkable,  they  who  had  the 
most  clouded  notions  of  such  subjects  were  the  loudest  in 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  439 

their  denunciations.  Unhappily,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hornblower, 
who  had  possession  of  the  ground,  took  a  course  which  had 
a  tendency  to  aggravate  instead  of  lessening  this  strife 
among  the  sects.  Had  he  been  prudent,  he  would  have 
proclaimed  louder  than  ever  "Christ,  and  him  crucified;" 
but,  he  made  the  capital  mistake  of  going  up  and  down, 
crying  with  the  mob,  "the  church,  the  church!"  This 
kept  constantly  before  the  eyes  and  ears  of  the  dissenting 
part  of  the  population — dissenting  from  his  opinions  if  not 
from  an  establishment — the  very  features  that  were  the 
most  offensive  to  them.  By  "  the  church"  they  did  not 
understand  the  same  divine  institution  as  that  recognised 
by  Mr.  Hornblower  himself,  but  surplices,  and  standing 
up  and  sitting  down,  and  gowns,  and  reading  prayers  out 
of  a  book,  and  a  great  many  other  similar  observances, 
which  were  deemed  by  most  of  the  people  relics  of  the 
•*  scarlet  woman."  It  is  wonderful,  about  what  insignifi 
cant  matters  men  can  quarrel,  when  they  wish  to  fall  out. 
Perhaps  religion,  under  these  influences,  had  quite  as 
much  to  do  with  the  downfall  of  the  governor,  which 
shortly  after  occurred,  as  politics,  and  the  newspaper,  and 
the  new  lawyer,  all  of  which  and  whom  did  everything  that 
was  in  their  power  to  destroy  him. 

At  length,  the  demagogues  thought  they  had  made  suf 
ficient  progress  to  spring  their  mine.  The  journal  came 
out  with  a  proposal  to  call  a  convention,  to  alter  and  im 
prove  the  fundamental  law.  That  law  contained  a  clause 
already  pointing  out  the  mode  by  which  amendments  were 
to  be  made  in  the  constitution  ;  but  this  mode  required  the 
consent  of  the  governor,  of  the  council,  and  finally,  of  the 
people.  It  was  a  slow,  deliberative  process,  too,  one  by 
which  men  had  time  to  reflect  on  what  they  were  doing, 
and  so  far  protected  vested  rights  as  to  render  it  certain 
that  no  very  great  revolution  could  be  effected  under  its 
shadow.  Now,  the  disaffected  aimed  at  revolution — at 
carrying  out  completely  the  game  of  "  puss  in  the  corner," 
and  it  became  necessary  to  set  up  some  new  principle  by 
which  they  could  circumvent  the  old  fundamental  law. 

This  was  very  easily  accomplished  in  the  actual  state  of 
the  public  mind ;  it  was  only  to  carry  out  the  doctrine  of 
the  sway  of  the  majority  to  a  practical  result;  and  this  was 


440  THE  CRATER; 

so  cleverly  done  as  actually  to  put  the  balance  of  power  in 
the  hands  of  the  minority.  There  is  nothing  new  in  this, 
however,  as  any  cool-headed  man  may  see  in  this  enlight 
ened  republic  of  our  own,  daily  examples  in  which  the 
majority-principle  works  purely  for  the  aggrandizement 
of  a  minority  clique.  It  makes  very  little  difference  how 
men  are  ruled ;  they  will  be  cheated ;  for,  failing  of  rogues 
at  head-quarters  to  perform  that  office  for  them,  they  are 
quite  certain  to  set  to  work  to  devise  some  means  of  cheat 
ing  themselves.  At  the  crater  this  last  trouble  was  spared 
them,  the  opposition  performing  that  office  in  the  following 
ingenious  manner. 

The  whole  colony  was  divided  into  parishes,  which  ex 
ercised  in  themselves  a  few  of  the  minor  functions  of  go 
vernment.  They  had  a  limited  legislative  power,  like  the 
American  town  meetings.  In  these  parishes,  laws  were 
passed,  to  require  the  people  to  vote  '  yes'  or  '  no,'  in  order 
to  ascertain  whether  there  should,  or  should  not  be,  a  con 
vention  to  amend  the  constitution.  About  one-fourth  of 
the  electors  attended  these  primary  meetings,  and  of  the 
ten  meetings  which  were  held,  in  six  "  yes"  prevailed  by 
average  majorities  of  about  two  votes  in  each  parish.  This 
was  held  to  be  demonstration  of  the  wishes  of  the  majority 
of  the  people  to  have  a  convention,  though  most  of  those 
who  staid  away  did  so  because  they  believed  the  whole 
procedure  not  only  illegal,  but  dangerous.  Your  hungry 
demagogue,  however,  is  not  to  be  defeated  by  any  scruples 
so  delicate.  To  work  these  elites  of  the  colony  went,  to 
organise  an  election  for  members  of  the  convention.  At 
this  election  about  a  third  of  the  electors  appeared,  the 
candidates  succeeding  by  handsome  majorities,  the  rest 
staying  away  because  they  believed  the  whole  proceedings 
illegal.  Thus  fortified  by  the  sacred  principle  of  the  sway 
of  majorities,  these  representatives  of  a  minority,  met  in 
convention,  and  formed  an  entirely  new  fundamental  law ; 
one,  indeed,  that  completely  subverted  the  old  one,  not 
only  in  fact,  but  in  theory.  In  order  to  get  rid  of  the  go 
vernor  to  a  perfect  certainty,  for  it  was  known  that  he 
could  still  command  more  votes  for  the  office  than  any 
other  man  in  the  colony,  one  article  provided  that  no  per- 
uon  should  hold  the  office  of  governor,  either  prospectively, 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  441 

or  perspectively,  more  than  five  years,  consecutively.  This 
placed  Mr.  Mark  Woolston  on  the  shelf  at  the  next  elec 
tion.  Two  legislative  bodies  were  formed,  the  old  council 
was  annihilated,  and  everything  was  done  that  cunning 
could  devise,  to  cause  power  and  influence  to  pass  into 
new  hands.  This  was  the  one  great  object  of  the  whole 
procedure,  and,  of  course,  it  was  not  neglected. 

When  the  new  constitution  was  completed,  it  was  re 
ferred  back  to  the  people  for  approval.  At  this  third  ap 
peal  to  the  popular  voice,  rather  less  than  half  of  all  the 
electors  voted,  the  constitution  being  adopted  by  a  majority 
of  one-third  of  those  who  did.  By  this  simple,  and  exquisite 
republican  process,  was  the  principle  of  the  sway  of  major 
ities  vindicated,  a  new  fundamental  law  for  the  colony  pro 
vided,  and  all  the  old  incumbents  turned  out  of  office. 
'  Silence  gives  consent,'  cried  the  demagogues,  who  forgol 
they  had  no  right  to  put  their  questions ! 

Religion  had  a  word  to  say  in  these  changes.  The  cir 
cumstance  that  the  governor  was  an  Episcopalian  recon 
ciled  many  devout  Christians  to  the  palpable  wrong  thai 
was  done  him ;  and  it  was  loudly  argued  that  a  church 
government  of  bishops,  was  opposed  to  republicanism,  and 
consequently  ought  not  to  be  entertained  by  republicans. 
This  charming  argument,  which  renders  religious  faith 
secondary  to  human  institutions,  instead  of  human  institu 
tions  secondary  to  religious  faith,  thus  completely  putting 
the  cart  before  the  horse,  has  survived  that  distant  revolu 
tion,  and  is  already  flourishing  in  more  eastern  climes.  It 
is  as  near  an  approach  to  an  idolatrous  worship  of  self,  as 
human  conceit  has  recently  tolerated. 

As  a  matter  of  course,  elections  followed  the  adoption 
of  the  new  constitution.  Pennock  was  chosen  governor 
for  two  years ;  the  new  lawyer  was  made  judge ;  the  editor, 
secretary  of  state  and  treasurer ;  and  other  similar  changes 
were  effected.  All  the  Woolston  connection  were  com 
pletely  laid  on  the  shelf.  This  was  not  done  so  much  by 
the  electors,  with  whom  they  were  still  popular,  as  by  means 
of  the  nominating  committees.  These  nominating  com 
mittees  were  expedients  devised  to  place  the  power  in  the 
hands  of  a  few,  in  a  government  of  the  many.  The  rule 
of  the  majority  is  so  very  sacred  a  thing  that  it  is  fount} 


442  THE   CRATER; 

necessary  to  regulate  it  by  legerdemain.  No  good  repub 
lican  ever  disputes  the  principle,  while  no  sagacious  one 
ever  submits  to  it.  There  are  various  modes,  however,  of 
defeating  all '  sacred  principles,'  and  this  particular  *  sacred 
principle'  among  the  rest.  The  simplest  is  that  of  caucus 
nominations.  The  process  is  a  singular  illustration  of  the 
theory  of  a  majority-government.  Primary  meetings  are 
called,  at  which  no  one  is  ever  present,  but  the  wire-pullers 
and  their  puppets.  Here  very  fierce  conflicts  occur  be 
tween  the  wire-pullers  themselves,  and  these  are  frequently 
decided  by  votes  as  close  as  majorities  of  one,  or  two. 
Making  the  whole  calculation,  it  follows  that  nominations 
are  usually  made  by  about  a  tenth,  or  even  a  twentieth  of 
the  body  of  the  electors ;  and  this,  too,  on  the  supposition 
that  they  who  vote  actually  have  opinions  of  their  own,  aa 
usually  they  have  not,  merely  wagging  their  tongues  as  the 
wires  are  pulled.  Now,  these  nominations  are  conclusive, 
when  made  by  the  ruling  party,  since  there  are  no  con 
certed  means  of  opposing  them.  A  man  must  have  a  fla 
grantly  bad  character  not  to  succeed  under  a  regular  nomi 
nation,  or  he  must  be  too  honest  for  the  body  of  the  electors ; 
one  fault  being  quite  as  likely  to  defeat  him  as  the  other. 

In  this  way  was  a  great  revolution  effected  in  the  colony 
of  the  crater.  At  one  time,  the  governor  thought  of  knock 
ing  the  whole  thing  in  the  head,  by  the  strong  arm ;  as  he 
might  have  done,  and  would  have  been  perfectly  justified 
in  doing.  The  Kannakas  were  now  at  his  command,  and, 
in  truth,  a  majority  of  the  electors  were  with  him ;  but 
political  jugglery  held  them  in  duress.  A  majority  of  the 
electors  of  the  state  of  New  York  are,  at  this  moment,  op 
posed  to  universal  suffrage,  especially  as  it  is  exercised  in 
the  town  and  village  govermnents,  but  moral  cowardice 
holds  them  in  subjection.  Afraid  of  their  own  shadows, 
each  politician  hesitates  to  {  bell  the  cat.'  What  is  more, 
the  select  aristocrats  and  monarchists  are  the  least  bold  in 
acting  frankly,  and  in  saying  openly  what  they  think; 
leaving  that  office  to  be  discharged,  as  it  ever  will  be,  by 
the  men  who — true  democrats,  and  not  canting  democrats 
— willing  to  give  the  people  just  as  much  control  as  they 
know  how  to  use,  or  which  circumstances  will  allow  them 
to  use  beneficially  to  themselves,  do  not  hesitate  to  speak 


©R,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  443 

with  the  candour  and  manliness  of  their  principles.  These 
men  call  things  by  their  right  names,  equally  eschewing 
the  absurdity  of  believing  that  nature  intended  rulers  to 
descend  from  male  to  male,  according  to  the  order  of  pri 
mogeniture,  or  the  still  greater  nonsense  of  supposing  it 
necessary  to  obtain  the  most  thrifty  plants  from  the  hot 
beds  of  the  people,  that  they  may  be  transplanted  into  the 
beds  of  state,  reeking  with  the  manure  of  the  gutters. 

The  governor  submitted  to  the  changes,  through  a  love 
of  peace,  and  ceased  to  be  anything  more  than  a  private 
citizen,  when  he  had  so  many  claims  to  be  first,  and  when, 
in  fact,  he  had  so  long  been  first.  No  sovereign  on  his 
throne,  could  write  Gratia  Dei  before  his  titles  with  stricter 
conformity  to  truth,  than  Mark  Woolston ;  but  his  right 
did  not  preserve  him  from  the  ruthless  plunder  of  the  de 
magogue.  To  his  surprise,  as  well  as  to  his  grief,  Pen- 
nock  was  seduced  by  ambition,  and  he  assumed  the  func 
tions  of  the  executive  with  quite  as  little  visible  hesitation, 
as  the  heir  apparent  succeeds  to  his  father's  crown. 

It  would  be  untrue  to  say  that  Mark  did  not  feel  the 
change ;  but  it  is  just  to  add  that  he  felt  more  concern  for 
the  future  fate  of  the  colony,  than  he  did  for  himself  or  his 
children.  Nor,  when  he  came  to  reflect  on  the  matter,  was 
he  so  much  surprised  that  he  could  be  supplanted  in  this 
way,  under  a  system  in  which  the  sway  of  the  majority  was 
so  much  lauded,  when  he  did  not  entertain  a  doubt  that 
considerably  more  than  half  of  the  colony  preferred  the 
old  system  to  the  new,  and  that  the  same  proportion  of  the 
people  would  rather  see  him  in  the  Colony  House,  than  to 
see  John  Pennock  in  his  stead.  But  Mark — we  must  call 
him  the  governor  no  longer — had  watched  the  progress  of 
events  closely,  and  began  to  comprehend  them.  He  had 
learned  the  great  and  all-important  political  truth,  THAT 

THE  MORE  A  PEOPLE  ATTEMPT  TO  EXTEND  THEIR  POWER 

DIRECTLY  OVER  STATE  AFFAIRS,  THE   LESS  THEY,  IN 

FACT,  CONTROL  THEM,  AFTER  HAVING  ONCE  PASSED  THE 
POINT  OF  NAMING  LAWGIVERS  AS  THEIR  REPRESENTA 
TIVES  J  MERELY  BESTOWING  ON  A  FEW  ARTFUL  MANAGERS 
THE  INFLUENCE  THEY  VAINLY  IMAGINE  TO  HAVE  SECURED 

ro  THEMSELVES.  This  truth  should  be  written  in  letters 
of  gold,  at  every  corner  of  the  streets  and  highways  in  a 


444  THE  CRATER; 

republic ;  for  truth  it  is,  and  truth,  those  who  press  the  fore 
most  on  another  path  will  the  soonest  discover  it  to  be. 
The  mass  may  select  their  representatives,  may  know  them, 
and  may  in  a  good  measure  so  far  sway  them,  as  to  keep 
them  to  their  duties ;  but  when  a  constituency  assumes  to 
enact  the  part  of  executive  and  judiciary,  they  not  only  get 
beyond  their  depth,  but  into  the  mire.  What  can,  what 
does  the  best-informed  layman,  for  instance,  know  of  the 
qualifications  of  this  or  that  candidate  to  fill  a  seat  on  the 
bench  !  He  has  to  take  another's  judgment  for  his  guide; 
and  a  popular  appointment  of  this  nature,  is  merely  trans 
ferring  the  nomination  from  an  enlightened,  and,  what  is 
everything,  a  RESPONSIBLE  authority,  to  one  that  is  un 
avoidably  at  the  mercy  of  second  persons  for  its  means  of 
judging,  and  is  as  IRRESPONSIBLE  AS  AIR. 

At  one  time,  Mark  Woolston  regretted  that  he  had  not 
established  an  opposition  paper,  in  order  to  supply  an  anti 
dote  for  the  bane ;  but  reflection  satisfied  him  it  would  have 
been  useless.  Everything  human  follows  its  law,  until 
checked  by  abuses  that  create  resistance.  This  is  true  of 
the  monarch,  who  misuses  power  until  it  becomes  tyranny  ; 
of  the  nobles,  who  combine  to  restrain  the  monarch,  until 
the  throes  of  an  aristocracy-ridden  country  proclaim  that 
it  has  merely  changed  places  with  the  prince ;  of  the  people, 
who  wax  fat  and  kick !  Everything  human  is  abused ;  and 
it  would  seem  that  the  only  period  of  tolerable  condition 
is  the  transition  state,  when  the  new  force  is  gathering  to 
a  head,  and  before  the  storm  has  time  to  break.  In  the 
mean  time,  the  earth  revolves,  men  are  born,  live  their 
time,  and  die ;  communities  are  formed  arid  are  dissolved ; 
dynasties  appear  and  disappear ;  good  contends  with  evil, 
and  evil  still  has  its  day ;  the  whole,  however,  advancing 
slowly  but  unerringly  towards  that  great  consummation, 
which  was  designed  from  the  beginning,  and  which  is  as 
certain  to  arrive  in  the  end,  as  that  the  sun  sets  at  night 
and  rises  in  the  morning.  The  supreme  folly  of  the  hour 
is  to  imagine  that  perfection  will  come  before  its  stated 
time. 


OR,  VULCAN'S   PEAK.  445 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

•»  This  is  thy  lesson,  mighty  sea ! 

Man  calls  the  dimpled  earth  his  own, 
The  flowery  vale,  the  golden  lea ; 

And  on  the  wild  gray  mountain-stone 
Claims  nature's  temple  for  his  throne ! 

But  where  thy  many  voices  sing 
Their  endless  song,  the  deep,  deep  tone 

Calls  back  his  spirit's  airy  wing, 
He  shrinks  into  himself,  when  God  is  king  !" 

LtJNT. 

FOR  some  months  after  the  change  of  government,  Mark 
Woolston  was  occupied  in  attending  to  the  arrangement 
of  his  affairs,  preparatory  to  an  absence  of  some  length. 
Bridget  had  expressed  a  strong  wish  to  visit  America  once 
more,  and  her  two  eldest  children  were  now  of  an  age 
when  their  education  had  got  to  be  a  matter  of  some  soli 
citude.  It  was  \he  intention  of  their  father  to  send  them 
to  Pennsylvania  ^br  that  purpose,  when  the  proper  time 
arrived,  and  to  place  them  under  the  care  of  his  friends 
there,  who  would  gladly  take  the  charge.  Recent  events 
probably  quickened  this  intention,  both  as  to  feeling  and 
time,  for  Mark  was  naturally  much  mortified  at  the  turn 
things  had  taken. 

There  was  an  obvious  falling-off  in  the  affairs  of  the 
colony  from  the  time  it  became  transcendantly  free.  In 
religion,  the  sects  ever  had  fair-play,  or  ever  since  the  arri 
val  of  the  parsons,  and  that  had  been  running  down,  from 
the  moment  it  began  to  run  into  excesses  and  exaggera 
tions.  As  soon  as  a  man  begins  to  shout  in  religion,  he 
may  be  pretty  sure  that  he  is  "  hallooing  before  he  is  out 
of  the  woods."  It  is  true,  that  all  our  feelings  exhibit 
themselves,  more  or  less,  in  conformity  to  habits  and  man 
ners,  but  there  is  something  profane  in  the  idea  that  the 
spirit  of  God  manifests  its  presence  in  yells  and  clamour, 
even  when  in  possession  of  those  who  have  not  been 
38 


446  THE  CRATER; 

trained  to  the  more  subdued  deportment  of  reason  and 
propriety.  The  shouting  and  declamatory  parts  of  religion 
may  be  the  evil  spirits  growling  and  yelling  before  they  are 
expelled,  but  these  must  not  be  mistaken  for  the  voice  of 
the  Ancient  of  Days. 

The  morals  decayed  as  religion  obtained  its  false  direc 
tions.  Self-righteousness,  the  inseparable  companion  of 
the  quarrels  of  sects,  took  the  place  of  humility,  and  thus 
became  prevalent  that  most  dangerous  condition  of  the 
soul  of  man,  when  he  imagines  that  he  sanctifies  what  he 
does ;  a  frame  of  mind,  by  the  way,  that  is  by  no  means 
strange  to  very  many  who  ought  to  be  conscious  of  their 
un  worthiness.  With  the  morals  of  the  colony,  its  prospe 
rity,  even  in  worldly  interests,  began  to  lose  ground.  The 
merchants,  as  usual,  had  behaved  badly  in  the  political 
struggle.  The  intense  selfishness  of  the  caste  kept  them 
occupied  with  the  pursuit  of  gain,  at  the  most  critical  mo 
ments  of  the  struggle,  or  when  their  influence  might  have 
been  of  use ;  and  when  the  mischief  was  done,  and  they 
began  to  feel  its  consequences,  or,  what  to  them  was  the 
same  thing,  to  fancy  that  the  low  price  of  oil  in  Europe 
was  owing  to  the  change  of  constitution  at  the  Crater, 
they  started  up  in  convulsed  and  mercenary  efforts  to  coun 
teract  the  evil,  referring  all  to  money,  and  not  manifesting 
any  particular  notions  of  principles  concerning  the  man 
ner  in  which  it  was  used.  As  the  cooler  heads  of  the 
minority — perhaps  we  ought  to  say  of  the  majority,  for, 
oddly  enough,  the  minority  now  actually  ruled  in  Crater- 
dom,  by  carrying  out  fully  the  principle  of  the  sway  of  the 
majority — but,  as  the  cooler  heads  of  the  colony  well  un 
derstood  that  nothing  material  was  to  follow  from  such 
spasmodic  and  ill-directed  efforts,  the  merchants  were  not 
backed  in  their  rising,  and,  as  commonly  happens  with  the 
slave,  the  shaking  of  their  chains  only  bound  them  so 
much  the  tighter. 

At  length  the  Rancocus  returned  from  the  voyage  on 
which  she  had  sailed  just  previously  to  the  change  in  the 
constitution,  and  her  owner  announced  his  intention  to  go 
in  her  to  America,  the  next  trip,  himself.  His  brothers, 
Heaton,  Anne,  their  children,  and,  finally,  Captain  Betts, 
Friend  Martha,  and  their  issue,  all,  sooner  or  later,  joined 


OR,   VULCAN'S  PEAK.  447 

the  party ;  a  desire  to  visit  the  low  shores  of  the  Dela 
ware  once  more,  uniting  with  the  mortification  of  the  re 
cent  changes,  to  induce  them  all  to  wish  to  see  the  land 
of  their  fathers  before  they  died.  All  the  oil  in  the  colony 
was  purchased  by  Woolston,  at  rather  favourable  prices, 
the  last  quotations  from  abroad  being  low :  the  ex-governor 
disposed  of  most  of  his  movables,  in  order  to  effect  so 
large  an  operation.  He  also  procured  a  glorious  collection 
of  shells,  and  some  other  light  articles  of  the  sort,  filling 
the  ship  as  full  as  she  could  be  stowed.  It  was  then  that 
the  necessity  of  having  a  second  vessel  became  apparent, 
and  Betts  determined  to  withdraw  his  brig  from  the  fishery, 
and  to  go  to  America  in  her.  The  whales  had  been  driven 
off  the  original  fishing-ground,  and  the  pursuit  was  no 
longer -as  profitable  as  it  had  been,  three  fish  having  been 
taken  formerly  to  one  now ;  a  circumstance  the  hierarchy 
of  the  Crater  did  not  fail  to  ascribe  to  the  changes  in  the 
constitution,  while  the  journal  attributed  it  to  certain 
aristocratical  tendencies  which,  as  that  paper  averred,  had 
crept  into  the  management  of  the  business. 

The  vessels  were  loaded,  the  passengers  disposing  of  as 
many  of  their  movables  as  they  could,  and  to  good  advan 
tage,  intending  to  lay  in  fresh  supplies  in  Philadelphia,  and 
using  the  funds  thus  obtained  to  procure  a  freight  for  the 
brig.  At  the  end  of  a  month,  both  vessels  were  ready;  the 
different  dwellings  were  transferred  to  new  occupants, 
some  by  lease  and  others  by  sales,  and  all  those  who  con 
templated  a  voyage  to  America  were  assembled  at  the 
crater.  Previously  to  taking  leave  of  a  place  that  had  be 
come  endeared  to  him  by  so  many  associations  and  inte 
rests,  Mr.  Woolston  determined  to  take  the  Anne,  hiring 
her  of  the  government  for  that  purpose — Governor  Pennock 
condescendingly  deciding  that  the  public  interests  would 
not  suffer  by  the  arrangement — and  going  in  her  once  more 
through  the  colony,  on  a  tour  of  private,  if  not  of  official 
inspection.  Bridget,  Heaton,  Anne,  and  Captain  Betts, 
were  of  the  party ;  the  children  being  left  at  the  crater,  in 
proper  custody. 

The  first  visit  was  paid  to  Rancocus  Island.  Here  the 
damage  done  by  the  pirates  had  long  been  repaired ;  and 
the  mills,  kilns  and  other  works,  were  in  a  state  of  pros- 


448  THE   CRATER; 

perous  industry.  The  wild  hogs  and  goats  were  now  so 
numerous  as  to  be  a  little  troublesome,  particularly  the  for 
mer  ;  but,  a  good  many  being  shot,  the  inhabitants  did  not 
despair  of  successfully  contending  with  them  for  the  pos 
session  of  the  place.  There  were  cattle,  also,  on  this  isl 
and  ;  but  they  were  still  tame,  the  cows  giving  milk,  and 
the  oxen  being  used  in  the  yoke.  These  were  the  descend 
ants  of  the  single  pair  Woolston  had  sent  across,  less  than 
twelve  years  before,  which  had  increased  in  an  arithmetical 
proportion,  care  having  been  taken  not  to  destroy  any. 
They  now  exceeded  a  hundred,  of  whom  quite  half  were 
cows ;  and  the  islanders  occasionally  treated  themselves  to 
fresh  beef.  As  cows  had  been  brought  into  the  colony  in 
every  vessel  that  arrived,  they  were  now  in  tolerably  good 
numbers,  Mark  Woolston  himself  disposing  of  no  less  than 
six  when  he  broke  up  his  farming  establishment  for  a  visit 
to  America.  There  were  horses,  too,  though  not  in  as 
great  numbers  as  there  were  cows  and  oxen.  Boats  were 
so  much  used,  that  roadsters  were  very  little  needed;  and 
this  so  much  the  less,  on  account  of  the  great  steadiness 
of  the  trades.  By  this  time,  everybody  understood  the 
last;  and  the  different  channels  of  the  group  were  worked 
through  with  almost  the  same  facility  as  would  have  been 
the  case  with  so  many  highways.  Nevertheless,  horses 
were  to  be  found  in  the  colony,  and  some  of  the  husband 
men  preferred  them  to  the  horned  cattle  in  working  their 
lands. 

A  week  was  passed  in  visiting  the  group.  Something 
like  a  consciousness  of  having  ill-treated  Mark  was  to  be 
traced  among  the  people;  and  this  feeling  was  manifested 
under  a  well-known  law  of  our  nature,  which  rendered 
those  the  most  vindictive  and  morose,  who  had  acted  the 
worst.  Those  who  had  little  more  to  accuse  themselves 
of  than  a  compliant  submission  to  the  wrong-doing  of 
others,  in  political  matters  everywhere  the  most  numerous 
class  of  all,  received  their  visiters  well  enough,  and  in 
many  instances  they  treated  their  guests  with  delicacy  and 
distinction.  On  the  whole,  however,  the  late  governor 
derived  but  little  pleasure  from  the  intercourse,  so  much 
mouthing  imbecility  being  blended  with  the  expressions  of 
regret  and  sympathy,  as  to  cause  him  to  mourn  over  the 


PEAK.  449 

compliance  of  his  fellow-creatures,  more  than  to  rejoice  at 
their  testimony  in  his  own  favour. 

But,  notwithstanding  all  these  errors  of  man,  nature  and 
time  had  done  their  work  magnificently  since  the  last 
"  progress"  of  Woolston  among  the  islands.  The  channels 
were  in  nearly  every  instance  lined  with  trees,  and  the 
husbandry  had  assumed  the  aspect  of  an  advanced  civiliza 
tion.  Hedges,  beautiful  in  their  luxuriance  and  flowers, 
divided  the  fields ;  and  the  buildings  which  contribute  to 
the  comforts  of  a  population  were  to  be  found  on  every 
side.  The  broad  plains  of  soft  mud,  by  the  aid  of  the  sun, 
the  rains,  the  guano,  and  the  plough,  had  now  been  some 
years  converted  into  meadows  and  arable  lands ;  and  those 
which  still  lay  remote  from  the  peopled  parts  of  the  group, 
still  nine-tenths  of  its  surface,  were  fast  getting  the  cha 
racter  of  rich  pastures,  where  cattle,  and  horses,  and  hogs 
were  allowed  to  roam  at  pleasure.  As  the  cock  crowed 
from  the  midst  of  his  attendant  party  of  hens  and  chickens, 
the  ex-governor  in  passing  would  smile  sadly,  his  thoughts 
reverting  to  the  time  when  its  predecessor  raised  its  shrill 
notes  on  the  naked  rocks  of  the  Reef! 

That  Reef  itself  had  undergone  more  changes  than  any 
other  spot  in  the  colony,  as  the  Peak  had  undergone  fewer. 
The  town  by  this  time  contained  more  than  two  hundred 
buildings,  of  one  gort  ana  anotner,  and  the  population  ex 
ceeded  five  hundred  souls.  This  was  a  small  population 
for  so  many  tenements ;  but  the  children,  as  yet,  did  not 
bear  a  just  proportion  to  the  adults.  The  crater  was  the 
subject  of  what  to  Mark  Woolston  was  a  most  painful  law 
suit.  From  the  first,  lie  had  claimed  that  spot  as  his  private 
property  ;  though  he  had  conceded  its  use  to  the  public, 
under  a  lease,  since  it  was  so  well  adapted,  by  natural  forma 
tion,  to  be  a  place  of  refuge  when  invasions  were  appre 
hended.  But  the  crater  he  had  found  barren,  and  had  ren 
dered  fertile ;  the  crater  had  even  seemed  to  him  to  be  an 
especial  gift  of  Providence  bestowed  on  him  in  his  misery ; 
and  the  crater  was  his  by  possession,  as  well  as  by  other 
rights,  when  he  received  strangers  into  his  association 
None  of  the  older  inhabitants  denied  this  claim.  It  is  the 
last  comers  who  are  ever  the  most  anxious  to  dispute  an 
cient  rights.  As  they  can  possess  none  of  these  established 
38* 


450  THE  CRATER; 

privileges  themselves,  they  dislike  that  others  should  enjoy 
them;  and  association  places  no  restraints  on  their  cupi 
dity.  Pennock,  once  in  the  hands  of  "  the  people,"  was 
obliged  to  maintain  their  rights,  or  what  some  among  them 
chose  to  call  their  rights ;  and  he  authorized  the  attorney- 
general  to  bring  an  action  of  ejectment  against  the  party 
in  possession.  Some  pretty  hard-faced  trickery  was  at 
tempted  in  the  way  of  legislation,  in  order  to  help  along 
the  claim  of  the  public ;  for,  if  the  truth  must  be  said,  the 
public  is  just  as  wont  to  resort  to  such  unworthy  means  to 
effect  its  purposes  as  private  individuals,  when  it  is  deemed 
necessary.  But  there  was  little  fear  of  the  "people's" 
failing;  they  made  the  law,  and  they  administered  it, 
through  their  agents ;  the  power  being  now  so  completely  in 
their  hands  that  it  required  twice  the  usual  stock  of  human 
virtue  to  be  able  to  say  them  nay,  as  had  formerly  been  the 
case.  God  help  the  man  whose  rights  are  to  be  maintained 
against  the  masses,  when  the  immediate  and  dependent 
nominees  of  those  masses  are  to  sit  in  judgment !  If  the 
public,  by  any  inadvertency,  have  had  the  weakness  to 
select  servants  that  are  superior  to  human  infirmities,  and 
who  prefer  to  do  right  rather  than  to  do  as  their  masters 
would  have  them,  it  is  a  weakness  that  experience  will  be 
sure  to  correct,  and  which  will  not  be  often  repeated. 

The  trial  of  this  cause  kept  the  Woolstons  at  the  crater 
a  week  longer  than  they  would  have  remained.  When  the 
cause  was  submitted  to  the  jury,  Mr.  Attorney-General  had 
a  great  deal  to  say  about  aristocracy  and  privileged  orders, 
as  well  as  about  the  sacred  rights  of  the  people.  To  hear 
him,  one  might  have  imagined  that  the  Woolstons  were 
princes,  in  the  full  possession  of  their  hereditary  states, 
and  who  were  dangerous  to  the  liberties  of"  the  mass,  in- 
etead  of  being  what  they  really  were,  citizens  without  one 
right  more  than  the  meanest  man  in  the  colony,  and  with 
even  fewer  chances  of  maintaining  their  share  of  these 
common  rights,  in  consequence  of  the  prejudice,  and  jea 
lousy,  and  most  of  all,  the  envy,  of  the  majority.  Woolston 
argued  his  own  cause,  making  a  clear,  forcible  and  manly 
appeal  to  the  justice  and  good  sense  of  the  jury,  in  vindi 
cation  of  his  claims;  which,  on  every  legal  as  well  as 
equitable  principle,  was  out  of  all  question  such  as  every 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  451 

civilized  community  should  have  maintained.  But  the 
great  and  most  powerful  foe  of  justice,  in  cases  of  this 
sort,  is  SI.ANG  ;  and  SLANG  in  this  instance  carne  very  near 
being  too  much  for  law.  The  jury  were  divided,  ten  going 
for  the  *  people,'  and  two  for  the  right;  one  of  the  last  be 
ing  Bigelow,  who  was  a  fearless,  independent  fellow,  and 
cared  no  more  for  the  bug-bear  called  the  '  people,'  by  the 
slang-whangers  of  politics,  than  he  did  for  the  Emperor  of 
Japan. 

The  day  after  this  fruitless  trial,  which  left  Mark's  claim 
in  abeyance  until  the  next  court,  a  period  of  six  months, 
the  intended  travellers  repaired  on  board  ship,  and  the  brig, 
with  her  party,  went  to  sea,  under  her  owner,  captain  Betts, 
who  had  provided  himself  with  a  good  navigator  in  the 
person  of  his  mate.  The  Rancocus,  however,  crossed  over 
to  the  Peak,  and  the  passengers  all  ascended  to  the  plain, 
to  take  leave  of  that  earthly  paradise.  Nature  had  done  so 
much  for  this  place,  that  it  had  been  the  settled  policy  of 
Mark  Woolston  to  suffer  its  native  charms  to  be  marred  as 
little  as  possible.  But  the  Peak  had  ever  been  deemed  a 
sort  of  West-End  of  the  Colony  ;  and,  though  the  distribu 
tion  of  it  had  been  made  very  fairly,  those  who  parted  with 
their  shares  receiving  very  ample  compensations  for  them, 
a  certain  distinction  became  attached  to  the  residence  on 
the  Peak.  Some  fancied  it  was  on  account  of  its  climate; 
some,  because  it  was  a  mountain,  and  was  more  raised  up 
in  the  world  than  the  low  islands  near  it ;  some,  because  it 
had  most  edible  birds,  and  the  best  figs;  but  none  of  those 
who  now  coveted  residences  there  for  their  families,  or  the 
name  of  residences  there,  would  allow  even  to  themselves, 
what  was  the  simple  fact,  that  the  place  received  it  highest 
distinction  on  account  of  the  more  distinguished  individuals 
who  dwelt  on  it.  At  first,  the  name  was  given  to  several 
settlements  in  the  group,  just  as  the  Manhattanese  have 
their  East  and  West  Broadway  ;  and,  just  for  the  very  same 
reasons  that  have  made  them  so  rich  in  Broadways,  they 
will  have  ere  long,  first-fifth,  second-fifth,  and  third-fifth 
avenue,  unless  common  sense  begins  to  resume  its  almost 
forgotten  sway  among  the  aldermen.  But  this  demonstra 
tion  in  the  way  of  names,  did  not  satisfy  the  minor-majo 
rity,  after  they  got  into  the  ascendant;  and  a  law  was 


452  THE  CRATER; 

passed  authorizing  a  new  survey,  and  a  new  subdivision 
of  the  public  lands  on  the  Peak,  among  the  citizens  of  the 
colony.  On  some  pretence  of  justice,  that  is  not  very 
easily  to  be  understood,  those  who  had  property  there 
already  were  not  to  have  shares  in  the  new  lottery ;  a  lot 
tery,  by  the  way,  in  which  the  prizes  were  about  twice  ai 
large  as  those  which  had  originally  been  distributed  among 
the  colonists. 

But,  Mark  and  Bridget  endeavoured  to  forget  every 
thing  unpleasant  in  this  visit  to  their  much-loved  home. 
They  regarded  the  place  as  a  boon  from  Providence,  that 
demanded  all  their  gratitude,  in  spite  of  the  abuses  of 
which  it  was  the  subject ;  and  never  did  it  seem  to  them 
more  exquisitely  beautiful,  perhaps  it  never  had  been  more 
perfectly  lovely,  than  it  appeared  the  hour  they  left  it. 
Mark  remembered  it  as  he  found  it,  a  paradise  in  the 
midst  of  the  waters,  wanting  only  in  man  to  erect  the  last 
great  altar  in  his  heart,  in  honour  of  its  divine  creator. 
As  yet,  its  beauties  had  not  been  much  marred ;  though 
the  new  irruption  menaced  them  with  serious  injuries. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Woolston  took  leave  of  their  friends,  and 
tore  themselves  away  from  the  charming  scenery  of  the 
Peak,  with  heavy  hearts.  The  Rancocus  was  waiting  for 
them,  under  the  lee  of  the  island,  and  everybody  was  soon 
on  board  her.  The  sails  were  filled,  and  the  ship  passed 
out  from  among  the  islands,  by  steering  south,  and  haul 
ing  up  between  the  Peak  and  the  volcano.  The  latter 
now  seemed  to  be  totally  extinct.  No  more  smoke  arose 
from  it,  or  had  indeed  risen  from  it,  for  a  twelvemonth.  It 
was  an  island,  and  in  time  it  might  become  habitable,  like 
the  others  near  it. 

Off  Cape  Plorn  the  Rancocus  spoke  the  Dragon  ;  Captain 
Belts  and  his  passengers  being  all  well.  The  two  vessels 
saw  no  more  of  each  other  until  the  ship  was  coming  out 
of  the  Bay  of  Rio,  as  the  brig  was  going  in.  Notwith 
standing  this  advantage,  and  the  general  superiority  of  the 
sailing  of  the  Rancocus,  such  was  the  nature  of  the  winds 
that  the  last  encountered,  that  when  she  passed  Cape  May 
lights  the  brig  was  actually  in  the  bay,  and  ahead  of  her ; 
This  circumstance,  however,  afforded  pleasure  rather  than 
anything  else,  and  the  two  vessels  landed  their  passengers 


OR,   VULCAN'S   PEAK.  453 

on  the  wharves  of  Philadelphia  within  an  hour  of  each 
other. 

Great  was  the  commotion  in  the  little  town  of  Bristol  at 
the  return  of  all  the  Woolstons,  who  had  gone  off,  no  one 
knew  exactly  whither ;  some  saying  to  New  Holland ; 
others  to  China ;  arid  a  few  even  to  Japan.  The  excite 
ment  extended  across  the  river  to  the  little  city  of  Bur 
lington,  and  there  was  danger  of  the  whole  history  of  the 
colony's  getting  into  the  newspapers.  The  colonists,  how 
ever,  were  still  discreet,  and  in  a  week  something  else 
occurred  to  draw  the  attention  of  the  multitude,  and  the 
unexpected  visit  was  soon  regarded  like  any  other  visit. 

Glad  enough,  notwithstanding,  were  the  near  relatives  of 
Bridget  and  Anne,  in  particular,  to  see  those  two  fine  young 
women  again.  Neither  appeared  much  more  than  a  twelve 
month  older  than  when  she  went  away.  This  was  owing 
to  the  delicious,  yet  not  enervating  climate,  in  which  both 
had  lived.  They  were  mothers,  and  a  little  more  matronly 
in  appearance,  but  none  the  less  lovely  ;  their  children, 
like  themselves,  were  objects  of  great  interest,  in  their  re 
spective  families,  and  happy  indeed  were  the  households 
which  received  them.  It  in  no  degree  lessened  the  satis 
faction  of  any  of  the  parties,  that  the  travellers  had  all  re 
turned  much  better  off  in  their  circumstances  than  when 
they  went  away.  Even  the  two  younger  Woolstons  were 
now  comfortable,  and  early  announced  an  intention  not  to 
return  to  the  islands.  As  for  the  ex-governor,  he  might  be 
said  to  be  rich ;  but  his  heart  was  still  in  the  colony,  over 
the  weaknesses  of  which  his  spirit  yearned,  as  the  indulgent 
parent  feels  for  the  failings  of  a  backsliding  child.  Never 
theless,  Bridget  was  persuaded  to  remain  with  her  father  a 
twelvemonth  longer  than  her  husband,  for  the  health  of  the 
old  gentleman  had  become  infirm,  and  he  could  not  bear 
to  part  with  his  only  child  so  soon  again,  after  she  had 
once  been  restored  to  his  arms.  It  was,  therefore,  decided, 
that  Mr.  Mark  Woolston  should  fill  the  Rancocus  with 
such  articles  as  were  deemed  the  most  useful  to  the  colo 
ny,  and  go  back  in  that  vessel,  leaving  his  wife  and  chil 
dren  at  Bristol,  with  the  understanding  he  would  return  and 
§eek  them  the  succeeding  summer.  A  similar  arrange 
ment  was  made  for  the  wife  and  children  of  Captain  Belts, 


454  THE  CRATER; 

Friend  Martha  Betts  being  much  in  the  practice  of  regu 
lating  her  conduct  by  that  of  Friend  Bridget  Woolston. 
Betts  sold  his  brig,  and  consented  to  go  in  the  Rancocus 
as  a  passenger,  having  no  scruples,  now  he  had  become 
comparatively  wealthy,  about  eating  with  his  old  shipmate, 
and  otherwise  associating  with  him,  though  it  was  alwayi 
as  a  sort  of  humble  companion. 

The  Heatons  determined  to  remain  in  America,  for  a 
time  at  least.  Mr.  Heaton  felt  the  ingratitude  of  the  co 
lonists  even  more  keenly  than  his  brother-in-law ;  for  he 
knew  how  much  had  been  done  for  them,  and  how  com 
pletely  they  had  forgotten  it  all.  Anne  regretted  the 
Peak,  and  its  delicious  climate;  but  her  heaUwas  mainly 
concentred  in  her  family,  and  she  could  not  be  otherwise 
than  happy,  while  permitted  to  dwell  with  her  husband 
and  children. 

When  the  Rancocus  sailed,  therefore,  she  had  no  one 
on  board  her  but  Mark  Woolston  and  Betts,  with  the  ex 
ception  of  her  proper  crew.  Her  cargo  was  of  no  great 
intrinsic  value,  though  it  consisted  in  articles  much  used, 
and  consequently  in  great  demand,  in  the  colony.  As  the 
vessel  had  lain  some  months  at  Philadelphia,  where  she 
had  been  thoroughly  repaired  and  new-coppered,  she 
sailed  well,  and  made  an  excellent  run  to  Rio,  nor  was 
her  passage  bad  as  far  as  the  straits  of  La  Maire.  Here 
she  encountered  westerly  gales,  and  the  Cape  may  be  said 
to  have  been  doubled  in  a  tempest.  After  beating  about 
for  six  weeks  in  that  stormy  ocean,  the  ship  finally  got 
into  the  Pacific,  and  went  into  Valparaiso.  Here  Mark 
Woolston  received  very  favourable  offers  for  most  of  his 
cargo,  but,  still  feeling  desirous  to  serve  his  colony,  he 
refused  them  all,  setting  sail  for  the  islands  as  soon  as  he 
had  made  a  few  repairs,  and  had  a  little  refreshed  his 
crew. 

The  passages  between  Valparaiso  and  the  Crater  had 
usually  consumed  about  five  weeks,  though  somewhat  de 
pendent  on  the  state  of  the  trades.  On  this  occasion  the 
run  was  rather  long,  it  having  been  attempted  to  find  a 
new  course.  Formerly,  the  vessels  had  fallen  in  with  the 
Crater,  between  Betto's  group  and  the  Reef,  which  was 
bringing  them  somewhat  to  leeward,  and  Mr.  Woolston 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  455 

now  thought  he  would  try  a  more  southern  route,  and  see 
if  he  could  not  make  the  Peak,  which  would  not  only 
bring  him  to  windward,  but  which  place  was  certainly 
giving  him  a  more  striking  object  to  fall  in  with  than  the 
lower  islands  of  the  group. 

It  was  on  the  morning  of  one  of  the  most  brilliant  days 
of  those  seas,  that  Captain  Saunders  met  the  ex-governor 
on  the  quarter-deck,  as  the  latter  appeared  there  for  the  first 
time  since  quitting  his  berth,  and  announced  that  he  had 
just  sent  look-outs  aloft  to  have  a  search  for  the  land.  By 
his  reckoning  they  must  be  within  twelve  leagues  of  the 
Peak,  and  he  was  rather  surprised  that  it  was  not  yet  visi 
ble  from  the  deck.  Make  it  they  must  very  shortly  ;  for 
he  was  quite  certain  of  his  latitude,  and  did  not  believe 
that  he  could  be  much  out  of  the  way,  as  respected  his 
longitude.  The  cross-trees  were  next  hailed,  and  the  inquiry 
was  made  if  the  Peak  could  not  be  seen  ahead.  The  an 
swer  was,  that  no  land  was  in  sight,  in  any  part  of  the 
ocean ! 

For  several  hours  the  ship  ran  down  before  the  wind, 
and  the  same  extraordinary  vacancy  existed  on  the  waters! 
At  length  an  island  was  seen,  and  the  news  was  sent  down 
on  deck.  Towards  that  island  the  ship  steered,  and  about 
two  in  the  afternoon,  she  came  up  close  under  its  lee,  and 
backed  her  topsail.  This  island  was  a  stranger  to  all  on 
board !  The  navigators  were  confident  they  must  be 
within  a  few  leagues  of  the  Peak,  as  well  as  of  the  volca 
no;  yet  nothing  could  be  seen  of  either,  while  here  was 
an  unknown  island  in  their  places!  This  strange  land 
was  of  very  small  dimensions,  rising  out  of  the  sea  about 
three  hundred  feet.  Its  extent  was  no  great  matter,  half 
a  mile  in  diameter  perhaps,  and  its  form  nearly  circular. 
A  boat  was  lowered,  and  a  party  pulled  towards  it. 

As  Mr.  Woolston  approached  this  as  yet  strange  spot, 
something  in  its  outlines  recurred  to  his  memory.  The 
boat  moved  a  little  further  north,  and  he  beheld  a  solitary 
tree.  Then  a  cry  escaped  him,  and  the  whole  of  the  ter 
rible  truth  flashed  on  his  mind.  He  beheld  the  summit 
of  the  Peak,  and  the  solitary  tree  was  that  which  he  had 
himself  preserved  as  a  signal.  The  remainder  of  his  pa 
radise  had  sunk  beneath  the  ocean ! 


456  THE  CRATER; 

On  landing,  and  examining  more  minutely,  this  awful 
catastrophe  was  fully  confirmed.  No  part  of  Vulcan's 
Peak  remained  above  water  but  its  rocky  summit,  and  its 
venerable  deposit,  of  guano.  All  the  rest  was  submerged  ; 
and  when  soundings  were  made,  the  plain,  that  spot  which 
had  almost  as  much  of  Heaven  as  of  earth  about  it,  ac 
cording  to  the  unenlightened  minds  of  its  inhabitants,  was 
found  to  be  nearly  a  hundred  fathoms  deep  in  the  ocean ! 

It  is  scarcely  possible  to  describe  the  sickening  awe 
which  came  over  the  party,  when  they  had  assured  them 
selves  of  the  fatal  facts  by  further  observation.  Everything, 
however,  went  to  confirm  the  existence  of  the  dire  catas 
trophe.  These  internal  fires  had  wrought  a  new  convul 
sion,  aca  the  labours  and  hopes  of  years  had  vanished  in 
a  momcft?.  The  crust  of  the  earth  had  again  been  broken; 
and  this  tii»ie  it  was  to  destroy,  instead  of  to  create.  The 
Jead  gave  feair'ul  confirmation  of  the  nature  of  the  disaster, 
the  soundings  answering  accurately  to  the  known  forma 
tion  of  the  land  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Peak.  But, 
in  the  Peak  itself,  it  was  not  possible  to  be  mistaken: 
there  it  was  in  its  familiar  outline,  just  as  it  had  stood  in 
its  more  elevated  position,  when  it  crowned  its  charming 
mountain,  and  overlooked  the  whole  of  that  enchanting 
plain  which  had  so  lately  stretched  beneath.  It  might  be 
said  to  resemble,  in  this  respect,  that  sublime  rock,  which 
is  recognised  as  a  part  of  the  "  everlasting  hills,"  in  Cole's 
series  of  noble  landscapes  that  is  called  "  the  March  of 
Empire ;"  ever  the  same  amid  the  changes  of  time,  and 
civilization,  and  decay,  there  it  was  the  apex  of  the  Peak  ; 
naked,  storm-beaten,  and  familiar  to  the  eye,  though  sur 
rounded  no  longer  by  the  many  delightful  objects  which 
had  once  been  seen  in  its  neighbourhood. 

Saddened,  and  chastened  in  spirit,  by  these  proofs  of 
what  had  befallen  the  colony,  the  party  returned  to  the 
ship.  That  night  they  remained  near  the  little  islet ;  next 
day  they  edged  away  in  the  direction  of  the  place  where 
the  volcano  had  formerly  risen  up  out  of  the  waves.  After 
running  the  proper  distance,  the  ship  was  hove-to,  and  her 
people  sounded;  two  hundred  fathoms  of  line  were  out, 
but  no  bottom  was  found.  Then  the  Rancocus  bore  up 
for  the  island  which  had  borne  her  own  name.  The  spot 


OR,  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  457 

was  ascertained,  but  the  mountain  had  also  sunk  into  the 
ocean.  In  one  place,  soundings  were  had  in  ten  fathoms 
water,  and  here  the  vessel  was  anchored.  Next  day,  when 
the  ship  was  again  got  under  way,  the  anchor  brought  up 
with  it,  a  portion  of  the  skeleton  of  a  goat.  It  had  doubt- 
less  fallen  upon  the  remains  of  such  an  animal,  and  hook 
ing  it  with  its  flukes  thus  unexpectedly  brought  once  more 
to  the  light  of  day,  the  remains  of  a  creature  that  may  have 
been  on  the  very  summit  of.  the  island,  when  the  earth 
quake  in  which  it  was  swallowed,  occurred. 

The  Rancocus  next  shaped  her  course  in  the  direction 
of  the  group.  Soundings  were  struck  near  the  western 
roads,  and  it  was  easy  enough  to  carry  the  vessel  towards 
what  had  formerly  been  the  centre  of  those  pleasant  isles. 
The  lead  was  kept  going,  and  a  good  look-out  was  had  for 
shoals ;  for,  by  this  time,  Mr.  Woolston  was  satisfied  that 
the  greatest  changes  had  occurred  at  the  southward,  as  in 
the  former  convulsion,  the  group  having  sunk  but  a  trifle 
compared  with  the  Peak ;  nevertheless,  every  person,  as 
well  as  thing,  would  seem  to  have  been  engulfed.  To 
wards  evening,  however,  as  the  ship  was  feeling  her  way 
to  windward  with  great  caution,  and  when  the  ex-governor 
believed  himself  to  be  at  no  great  distance  from  the  centre 
of  the  group,  the  look-outs  proclaimed  shoal-water,  and 
even  small  breakers,  about  half  a  mile  on  their  larboard 
beam.  The  vessel  was  hove-to,  and  a  boat  went  to  ex 
amine  the  place,  Woolston  and  his  friend  Betts  going  in 
her. 

The  shoal  was  made  by  the  summit  of  the  crater; 
breakers  appearing  in  one  or  two  places  where  the  hill 
had  been  highest.  The  boat  met  with  no  difficulty,  how 
ever,  in  passing  over  the  spot,  merely  avoiding  the  white 
water.  When  the  lead  was  dropped  into  the  centre  of  the 
crater,  it  took  out  just  twenty  fathoms  of  line.  That  dis 
tance,  then,  below  the  surface  of  the  sea,  had  the  crater, 
and  its  town,  and  its  people  sunk!  If  any  object  had 
floated,  as  many  must  have  done,  it  had  long  before  drifted 
off  in  the  currents  of  the  ocean,  leaving  no  traces  behind 
to  mark  a  place  that  had  so  lately  been  tenanted  by  human 
beings.  The  Rancocus  anchored  in  twenty-three  fathoms, 
it  being  thought  she  lay  nearly  over  the  Colony  House, 
39 


458  .     THE  CRATER; 

and  for  eight-and-forty  hours  the  exploration  was  conti* 
nued.  The  sites  of  many  a  familiar  spot  were  ascertained, 
but  nothing  could  be  found  on  which  even  a  spar  might 
be  anchored,  to  buoy  out  a  lost  community. 

At  the  end  of  the  time  mentioned,  the  ship  bore  up  for 
Betto's  group.  There  young  Ooroony  was  found,  peace 
fully  ruling  as  of  old.  Nothing  was  known  of  the  fate  of 
the  colonists,  though  surprise  had  been  felt  at  not  receiving 
any  visits  from  their  vessels.  The  intercourse  had  not 
been  great  of  late,  and  most  of  the  Kannakas  had  come 
away.  Soon  after  the  Woolstons  had  left,  the  especial 
friends  of  humanity,  and  the  almost  exclusive  lovers  of  the 
"  people"  having  begun  to  oppress  them  by  exacting  more 
work  than  was  usual,  and  forgetting  to  pay  for  it.  These 
men  could  say  but  little  about  the  condition  of  the  colony 
beyond  this  fact.  Not  only  they,  but  all  in  the  group, 
however,  could  render  some  account  of  the  awful  earth 
quake  of  the  last  season,  which,  by  their  descriptions, 
greatly  exceeded  ^n  violence  anything  formerly  known  in 
those  regions.  It  was  in  that  earthquake,  doubtless,  that 
the  colony  of  the  crater  perished  to  a  man. 

Leaving  handsome  and  useful  presents  with  his  friend, 
young  Ooroony,  and  putting  ashore  two  or  three  Kannakas 
who  were  in  the  vessel,  Woolston  now  sailed  for  Valpa 
raiso.  Here  he  disposed  of  his  cargo  to  great  advantage, 
and  purchased  copper  in  pigs  at  almost  as  great.  With 
this  new  cargo  he  reached  Philadelphia,  after  an  absence 
of  rather  more  than  nine  months. 

Of  the  colony  of  the  crater  and  its  fortunes,  little  was 
ever  said  among  its  survivors.  It  came  into  existence  in 
a  manner  that  was  most  extraordinary,  and  went  out  of  it 
in  one  that  was  awful.  Mark  and  Bridget,  however,  pon 
dered  deeply  on  these  things ;  the  influence  of  which  co 
loured  and  chastened  their  future  lives.  The  husband 
often  went  over,  in  his  mind,  all  the  events  connected  with 
his  knowledge  of  the  Reef.  He  would  thus  recall  his  ship 
wreck  and  desolate  condition  when  suffered  first  to  reach 
the  rocks ;  the  manner  in  which  he  was  the  instrument  in 
causing  vegetation  to  spring  up  in  the  barren  places ;  the 
earthquake,  and  the  upheaving  of  the  islands  from  out  of 
the  waters;  the  arrival  of  his  wife  and  other  friends;  the 


OR)  VULCAN'S  PEAK.  459 

commencement  and  progress  of  the  colony ;  its  blessings, 
BO  long  as  it  pursued  the  right,  and  its  curses,  when  it 
began  to  pursue  the  wrong ;  his  departure,  leaving  it  still 
a  settlement  surrounded  with  a  sort  of  earthly  paradise, 
and  his  return,  to  find  all  buried  beneath  the  ocean.  Of 
such  is  the  world  and  its  much-coveted  advantages.  For 
a  time  our  efforts  seem  to  create,  and  to  adorn,  and  to 
perfect,  until  we  forget  our  origin  and  destination,  substi 
tuting  self  for  that  divine  hand  which  alone  can  unite  the 
elements  of  worlds  as  they  float  in  gasses,  equally  from 
His  mysterious  laboratory,  and  scatter  them  again  into  thin 
air  when  the  works  of  His  hand  cease  to  find  favour  in 
His  view. 

Let  those  who  would  substitute  the  voice  of  the  created 
for  that  of  the  Creator,  who  shout  "  the  people,  the  peo 
ple,"  instead  of  hymning  the  praises  of  their  God,  who 
vainly  imagine  that  the  masses  are  sufficient  for  all  things, 
remember  their  insignificance  and  tremble.  They  are  but 
mites  amid  millions  of  other  mites,  that  the  goodness  of 
providence  has  produced  for  its  own  wise  ends ;  their 
boasted  countries,  with  their  vaunted  climates  and  pro 
ductions,  have  temporary  possessions  of  but  small  portions 
of  a  globe  that  floats,  a  point,  in  space,  following  the 
course  pointed  out  by  an  invisible  finger,  and  which  will 
one  day  be  suddenly  struck  out  of  its  orbit,  as  it  was  ori 
ginally  put  there,  by  the  hand  that  made  it.  Let  that 
dread  Being,  then,  be  never  made  to  act  a  second  part  in 
human  affairs,  or  the  rebellious  vanity  of  our  race  imagine 
that  either  numbers,  or  capacity,  or  success,  or  power  in 
arms,  is  aught  more  than  a  short-lived  gift  of  His  benefi 
cence,  to  be  resumed  when  His  purposes  are  accomplished 


THE    END. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


R    C'D  LD 


REC'D  LD 


JAN  i  yi 


LD  2lA-40m-4,'63 
(D6471slO)476B 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


